Minerals Management Service

Though BP has taken the brunt of the blame for the Gulf oil spill, the Deepwater Horizon rig was owned by Transocean, and as investigators delve deeper into what happened on April 20, they're focusing more on Transocean's maintenance practices.

After the BP disaster, the Minerals Management Service is under fire, and a presidential commission will hold a hearing. A report reveals how the MMS became partner with the industry it regulates, often putting revenue ahead of safety.

BP and Anadarko will battle over whether the former was grossly negligent in the Deepwater Horizon project before an arbitration panel, not a court. This means the fight won't help oil-spill plaintiffs. Plus, Viacom vs. YouTube and dangerously industry-friendly regulators.

BP used a cheaper and riskier well design in more than one-third of its Gulf of Mexico deepwater wells -- significantly more often than most other big drillers in the area, according to The Wall Street Journal. The same design was used in BP's Deepwater Horizon rig.

Most analysts doubt that the oil spill's cost to BP will be limited to the $75 million liability cap. Other ways BP will pay include EPA fines per barrel of crude leaked, damages under state law, and the probability that the spill will be many times larger by the time it's stopped.

Federal law requires companies drilling offshore to file an emergency plan detailing how they'll handle a major oil spill. But a new lawsuit filed against the government charges that the Minerals Management Service allowed BP to operate the Deepwater Horizon platform without one.