Victims of the flooding that followed Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans will not be receiving their $21 million settlement from local flood control districts because there would be no settlement to receive, ruled the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals in throwing out the deal to settle the class action lawsuit.

 

“Here, we are unable to definitively state, based on the record below, that the class will receive any benefit from the settlement,” wrote Circuit Judge Carolyn King for the appellate court. “Without quarreling with the district court’s findings, we nevertheless conclude that this settlement is not fair, reasonable and adequate ... because there has been no demonstration on the record below that the settlement will benefit the class in any way.”

 

Even though attorneys representing the plaintiffs agreed not to deduct their fees from the settlement, reimbursement for their expenses, along with other administrative costs, would have consumed the entire settlement fund, the appeals court found.

-Noel Brinkerhoff

 

Court Throws Out $21M Hurricane Katrina Award (by Barbara Leonard, Courthouse News Service)

Katrina Canal Breach Litigation (Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals) (pdf)