Justices affirm Exxon Valdez case dismissal

The Alaska Supreme Court has upheld the dismissal of a lawsuit in which a woman alleged she and her unborn child suffered harm from exposure to oil during the Exxon Valdez spill cleanup.

During the summer of 1989, Betty G. Carey worked for Veco, an oilfield services company involved in the cleanup of crude oil that spilled from the grounded tanker Exxon Valdez in March of that year.

In September 2010, Carey sued Alyeska Pipeline Service Co., the Anchorage-based operator of the trans-Alaska pipeline. The 800-mile pipeline delivers Alaska North Slope crude to tankers calling at Valdez.

The suit alleged Carey became ill while working on the oil spill and had suffered lifelong health complications as a result. It also alleged Alyeska exacerbated the harm by failing to fully disclose the toxins in the oil pursuant to Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations and “right-to-know” laws.

Alyeska argued it had never employed Carey, and that the oil spill was not its fault or responsibility.

On April 11, 2011, a Juneau Superior Court judge dismissed the case, concluding that Carey could not establish a cause of action against Alyeska “even if all the facts in her complaint are true.”

Carey, of Auke Bay, appealed to the state Supreme Court, representing herself.

She argued Alyeska should be held liable as it was the “product manager,” handling the oil delivered via the pipeline to the tanker that ultimately spilled the toxic crude.

On Sept. 12, the Supreme Court issued a six-page memorandum opinion noting Carey’s claims depended on an essential element missing from her suit: an employer-employee relationship.

The justices affirmed the Superior Court dismissal of the case because Alyeska was not Carey’s employer and “did not own or have custody of the oil when it spilled.”

—Wesley Loy