The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals entered a judgment against Exxon Mobil Corp. for the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.

The award was based on $507.5 million in damages suffered by Alaska Natives, fishermen, landowners and other plaintiffs. With interest -- which the court started calculating in 1996 -- the judgment comes to about $1 billion.

Alaska Natives will only get a small portion of the award. According to The Anchorage Daily News, villages and corporations are entitled to 4.6 percent of the judgment.

Exxon might appeal based on the interest calculation. The company said the clock should have started ticking last year, after the U.S. Supreme Court restricted the total amount of damages in the case.

Get the Story:
Court rules Exxon owes a billion in damages, interest (The Anchorage Daily News 6/16)

9th Circuit Decision:
Baker v. Exxon Mobile (June 15, 2009)

Supreme Court Decision:
Syllabus | Opinion [Souter] | Concurrence [Scalia] | Concurence/Dissent [Stevens] | Concurence/Dissent [Ginsburg] | Concurence/Dissent [Breyer]

Related Stories:
Editorial: Learning from Exxon Valdez spill (3/23)
Alaska Natives get small share of Exxon judgment (6/26)
Supreme Court rulings awaited in Indian Country (6/24)
Supreme Court cuts down Exxon oil spill damages (6/25)
Supreme Court hears Exxon Valdez oil spill case (2/28)
Supreme Court agrees to hear Exxon oil spill case (10/30)
Court won't reconsider $2.5B Exxon Valdez award (5/24)
Alaska Natives seek $100M for Exxon Valdez oil spill (5/2)
Judge orders Exxon to pay $7B for Valdez spill (1/29)
Exxon wants oil spill award reduced (06/13)
Alaska Natives appeal Exxon ruling (11/30)
Exxon fight has proven costly (11/9)
Native payout for Exxon spill lowered (11/8)
Exxon Valdez health complaints probed (11/6)