Barbier issued a series of orders tightening the scope of the first of what was expected to be three trial phases to a single question: Who is liable for the April 20, 2010, explosion that killed 11 workers and blew a well that spewed 4.4 million barrels of oil and 200,000 tons of methane gas into the Gulf of Mexico?..."He wants a ­compact trial," said Edward Sher­man, a professor at Tulane University Law School who is following the litigation. "This trial — if he covers all the issues that are potential for limitation proceedings — could be half a year. He's decided he's not going to do that."...BP...and six co-defendants are pointing the finger at each other, while thousands of fishermen, hoteliers and other business owners, two states and the U.S. government pursue negligence claims.[also refers to Transocean, Halliburton, Cameron Intl., Anadarko, Moex (part of Mitsui), Weatherford Intl.]