Credit Caroline Llanes / Michigan Radio
A federal judge is granting preliminary approval of a $641 million settlement of many of the civil lawsuits tied to the Flint Water Crisis.
The settlement involves lawsuits brought by Flint residents seeking damages related to their exposure to lead and other contaminates released when the city’s drinking water source was switched in 2014. Property owners and businesses are also seeking damages.
In the order released Thursday, U.S. District Judge Judith Levy admits this is “a partial settlement” and “does not represent the end of the Flint Water Crisis litigation.”
“It does not resolve all of the Flint Water Cases, and the first round of bellwether trials against the non-settling Defendants are currently set for June 4, 2021,” the judge wrote.