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Federal Judge Grants Preliminary Approval to $641.25M Flint Water SettlementContact: Ryan Jarvi 517-599-2746Agency: Attorney General
January 21, 2021
LANSING – Preliminary approval of the $641.25 million civil Flint water settlement was granted earlier today by Judge Judith Levy of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan. The Court’s approval order will become effective on Jan. 27, 2021.
This preliminary approval formally establishes the process through which Flint residents can indicate their intention to file eligible settlement claims that will be processed and paid by the claims administrator. Judge Levy will still need to issue a final ruling on the settlement, depending on whether the settlement is fair, adequate and reasonable, after conducting a fairness hearing currently scheduled for July 12, 2021. It appears the public will be permitted an opportunity to offer input at the hearing, but the Court has discretion to control the exten
9 & 10 News
January 21, 2021
The order will become effective on Jan. 27.
Judge Judith Levy of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan still needs to issue a final ruling on the settlement after a fairness hearing is conducted. That hearing is scheduled for July 12.
“With Judge Levy’s preliminary approval granted, this historic settlement is one step closer to providing Flint residents with the financial relief that they may have otherwise never received if the legal back-and-forth were to continue in the courts,” Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel said in a statement. “While final approval remains pending, the settlement can provide people with security that their claims will be heard and not tied up in legal proceedings for an indefinite period of time. Plaintiffs’ counsel and state attorneys, court-appointed mediators and a special master have all concurred that this agreement was made with the best interests of Flint in mind, and a federal jud
(AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
DETROIT (CN) A federal judge granted preliminary approval Thursday to a massive settlement for Flint residents who were poisoned by contaminated water.
The settlement is currently worth more than $641 million and has been described as the “most complex settlement I’ve ever seen” by U.S. District Judge Judith Levy, a Barack Obama appointee who is overseeing the negotiations.
“Generally, a settlement between an adult plaintiff and a defendant does not require court approval. But because this settlement presents a hybrid structure that includes a class component for unrepresented adults and involves a substantial number of potential claims of Minors preliminary approval of certain aspects of the proposed settlement is both appropriate and necessary,” Levy wrote in an opinion released Thursday morning.
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.