BP Defendants Settle Non-Hodgkin's Case Weeks Before Trial

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- BP Corporation North America Inc. and BP Products North America Inc. have reached a confidential settlement with a plaintiff claiming benzene exposure caused his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, sources told HarrisMartin. Detel v. BP Corporation North America Inc., et al., No. 04CV-207637 (Mo. Cir. Ct., Jackson Cty.).

The parties resolved the claims on Oct. 18, just weeks before the case was scheduled to proceed to trial in the Missouri Circuit Court for Jackson County. Justin Detel's case was one of several Sugar Creek cases, which all allege that the BP defendants allowed benzene and other toxic gases to …