BP won final approval of a $4 billion guilty plea that resolves all criminal charges against the company related to the biggest offshore oil spill in U.S. history. Its plea included a record $1.26 billion criminal fine. The settlement will also force the company to better monitor the company's future drilling operations.

A federal judge on Tuesday approved an agreement for BP PLC to plead guilty to manslaughter and other charges, and pay a record $4 billion in criminal penalties for the company's role in the 2010 oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico. U.S. District Judge Sarah Vance heard testimony from relatives of 11 workers who died when BP's blown-out Macondo well triggered an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig and started the spill on April 21, 2010.

In November, BP agreed to plead guilty to charges involving the deaths of its workers, and for lying to Congress about the size of the spill from its broken well. The disaster released over 200 million gallons of oil; much of it ended up in the Gulf and soiled the shorelines of several states.

For the criminal settlement, BP agreed to pay nearly $1.3 billion in fines. This settlement also includes payments of nearly $2.4 billion to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and $350 million to the National Academy of Sciences

BP also agreed to a settlement deal with lawyers for Gulf Coast residents and businesses who claim the spill cost them money. BP estimates the deal with private attorneys will cost the company roughly $7.8 billion.

Vance believed the plea deal was a "just punishment" considering the risks of litigation for BP and the alternatives to the settlement.

Four current or former BP employees have been indicted on separate criminal charges. The company's supervisors Robert Kaluza and Donald Vidrine have been charged with manslaughter, accused of repeatedly disregarding abnormal high-pressure readings.

Bloomberg.net helped to contribute to this report.