Florida condo collapse settlement tops $1B
FORT LAUDERDALE, FLA. » Attorneys for the families who lost relatives in last year's collapse of a Florida condominium tower that killed 98 people reached a $1.02 billion settlement Friday, providing a speedy resolution to lawsuits that could have dragged on for years.
The agreement to end litigation over the Champlain Towers South tragedy awaits approval by Circuit Judge Michael Hanzman, but that should just be a formality.
Lawyers previously had announced in court a tentative agreement that almost $1 billion would be split by the families whose relatives died or were harmed in the collapse of the 12-story tower in Surfside, and parties on both sides of the lawsuit filed a motion Friday committing to a $1.02 billion settlement fund. Additionally, nearly $100 million will be split by those who lost their property in the collapse.
Families of victims will have to file claims, as the money will not be split evenly. The goal is to begin distributing money by September.
The money comes from several sources, including insurance companies, engineering companies and a luxury condominium that had recently been built next door. None of the parties are admitting wrongdoing. A billionaire developer from Dubai is set to purchase the 1.8acre beachside site for $120 million, contributing to the settlement.
The judge will determine the attorneys fees, but it is expected to be a fraction of the third lawyers would normally earn. Cases like this typically take three years or more to reach a settlement, let alone get to trial.
In their motion for “preliminary approval of class action settlement,” attorneys for plaintiffs and defendants described the collapse in Surfside as a “`black swan' event that devastated this community,” and said they were “proud to have met this Court's challenge to provide relief to the class of victims before the oneyear anniversary of the collapse.”
Most of Champlain Towers South collapsed suddenly about 1:20 a.m. June 24 as most of its residents slept. Only three people survived the initial collapse.
No other survivors were found despite around-theclock efforts by rescuers who dug through a 40foot high pile of rubble for two weeks. Another three dozen people were able to escape from the portion of the building that remained standing. All 135 units were demolished, leaving a gaping hole along Surfside's beachfront.
The National Institute of Standards and Technology is investigating the cause of the collapse.