Alabama, one of four US states hit by the Gulf of Mexico oil spill, has become the first state to sue the energy giant BP for damages, attorney general says, Press TV reported.
The lawsuit accuses BP and other defendants of failing to follow industry standards and putting profit before safety.
"We are making this claim because we believe that BP has inflicted catastrophic harm on the state," Troy King, Alabama's attorney general, said on Friday.
"We are suing them for the amount it will take to make Alabama whole," AFP quoted King as saying.
The state wants money for cleanup response and rehabilitation costs, as well as punitive damages imposed on the companies.
The other parties involved in the suit include the rig owner Transocean, and contractor Halliburton.
More than two-hundred million gallons of crude have poured into the ocean since the blast on board the Deepwater Horizon oil rig back on April 20, which killed 11 workers.
The amount of the claim has not been released yet. The news comes after BP settled a dispute with the state of Texas over safety violations in its 2005 Texas City refinery disaster.
The oil giant agreed to pay an unprecedented 50.6 million dollars for its negligence in that case. The explosion in BP's Texas City refinery killed 15 workers.