A $600 million class action settlement, negotiated by G&E’s Elizabeth Graham and co-counsel, received final approval on September 25th. The settlement, which is the largest settlement paid by a railroad in U.S. history, was reached on behalf of thousands of households, businesses, property owners, and workers impacted by the environmental catastrophe caused by last year’s Norfolk Southern train derailment and chemical spill in East Palestine, Ohio. 

Along with monetary payments to residents and businesses within a 20-mile radius of East Palestine, the settlement also provides for past, present and future personal injuries resulting from exposure to the chemicals involved. Ms. Graham, along with co-counsel, and a significant team of G&E attorneys and paralegals, including G&E partner Adam Gomez, and associates Tudor Farcas, Caley DeGroote, worked with the East Palestine community and all class members throughout the course of the intense litigation and compressed settlement process.