The US federal government, several states, various local councils and private enterprises and individuals such as hotels and fishermen are suing BP after an explosion caused one of its rigs to gush millions of barrels of crude in the Gulf and claimed the lives of 11 oil workers.

Hearings were to begin Monday, but in a joint statement, BP and the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee said the eleventh-hour adjournment would allow the two sides more time to continue settlement discussions and attempt to reach an agreement.

"There can be no assurance that these discussions will lead to a settlement agreement. A further announcement will be made as appropriate," the statement said.

BP has said it has set aside $6.1 billion (4.5 billion euros) to cover claims by those who suffered as a result of the oil spill. Plaintiffs' lawyers have said, however, this estimate would not be enough to cover all losses their clients have suffered.

The Deepwater Horizon Multi-District Litigation (MDL) includes lawsuits from the Department of Justice that could lead to fines of more than $20 billion.

dfm/bk (Reuters, AFP)