Volkswagen hires law firm that defended BP after oil spill

NEWARK, N.J. (Bloomberg) -- Volkswagen AG has hired the U.S. law firm Kirkland & Ellis LLP to help it deal with the widening scandal over the carmaker’s faked pollution controls, according to a company spokeswoman.

Kirkland led BP Plc’s defense in the criminal investigation of the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil disaster that claimed 11 lives and caused the worst offshore spill in U.S. history, according to the firm’s website. Kirkland spokeswoman Olivia Clarke declined to comment on the Volkswagen hiring.

VW said as many as 11 million cars are affected and that it’s setting aside at least 6.5 billion euros for the matter.

The lead Kirkland lawyer on the BP criminal case was Mark Filip, a partner in Chicago and Washington, according to the firm’s website. He didn’t immediately respond to a call and email seeking comment.

In November 2012, BP agreed to plead guilty to 14 criminal counts, including 11 for felony manslaughter, and pay $4 billion to resolve the criminal case. BP agreed in July to pay a record $18.7 billion to settle all federal and state civil claims.