NEW ORLEANS (AP) _ A deal is almost final that would make a Chinese drywall manufacturer pay hundreds of millions of dollars to resolve court claims by thousands of Gulf Coast property owners who say the product wrecked their homes.
In an order issued Tuesday, U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon says he believes the proposed settlement is “fair, reasonable and adequate.”
Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin Co. agreed last month to create an uncapped fund to pay for repairing roughly 4,500 properties, mostly in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
The deal also would create a separate fund capped at $30 million to pay for other types of losses, including those blaming drywall for health problems.
Fallon will hold a “fairness hearing” on the agreement before giving his final approval.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)