Latest news with #GlobalSettlement
Yahoo
28-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hawaii to file lawsuit against fossil fuel companies
HONOLULU (KHON2) — As the legislative session that saw the State of Hawaii navigate an $800 million loss from the budget to pay for the Global Settlement for Lahaina wildfire victims comes to an end this week, Hawaii Governor Josh Green is turning attention to entities he thinks also need to pay up for the deadly and destructive disaster: fossil fuel companies. Aina to Makeke event aims to help Hawaii food businesses 'We will be filing suit, I believe, on Thursday against the fossil fuel companies. They have to pay their share because climate change and the climate impact is definitely connected to generations of extra fossil fuel that's been burned.' Governor Green said. The seven defendants in the Global Settlement include the State of Hawaii, County of Maui, Hawaiian Electric, Kamehameha Schools, West Maui Land Co., Hawaiian Telcom, and Spectrum/Charter Communications. They are slated to pay out a combined $4.037 billion. The hurricane-force wind-induced Lahaina wildfires in 2023 killed 102 people and caused billions in damage. 'Frankly, fossil fuels deserve to pay their share,' Governor Green said. 'We were able to weather all of those costs, but it would have been nice to have a couple of billion extra dollars from the fossil fuel companies. And I will be negotiating that over time. It's just the right thing to do.' The governor did not say which fossil fuel companies will be named in the also hopes that a bill to increase the Transit Accommodations Tax by 0.75% on travelers will help mitigate future wildfire risks through funding operations like fire breaks. 'Imagine if we had those fire breaks up before the wildfire occurred on August 8th, 2023, we wouldn't have had this $13 billion disaster.' Governor Green said. Research from the University of Hawaii has shown that visitors are willing to pay more for Hawaii culture, sustainability, and locally grown food. Governor Green says the fee would be about $4 on a room that costs $500 a night. 'That will help us pay for all of the climate impact that the 10 million visitors come, and cause,' he said. 'We'll be the first state in the country to do it. We need these dollars to help replenish our beaches, fix our fire breaks, have a stabilizing effect on the insurance market after the wildfires. It will bring over a hundred million dollars to us every year. Plus, for every $4,500,000 that we bond, we can get a hundred million dollars of projects out of it if we need them.' With uncertainty surrounding what climate change impacts will be in the islands in the future, Governor Green touts the financial malleability that the increase provides in responding to disasters, especially with uncertainty at the federal level and a law requiring the state to operate on a balanced budget. 'Say, for example, if we had a terrible hurricane that took out part of Waikiki, I could quickly fix it because we'll have these dollars. So that's another huge piece of legislation,' Governor Green said. Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news Senate Bill 1396 passed out of conference committee and is expected to be voted on this week. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
11-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Unanimous decision reached in Maui fire settlement
HONOLULU (KHON2) — The Hawaii Supreme Court ruled today that insurance companies are barred from subrogation claims against the defendants in the $4 billion Global Settlement for victims of the Lahaina wildfire, and is limited in its subrogation claims against is the process in which insurance companies are allowed to get reimbursed for insurance claim payouts from an at-fault party. Insurance companies say they've paid out close to $3 billion in claims from the Lahaina wildfire on August 8, 2023. Hawaii Supreme Court hears arguments over Lahaina wildfire victims' global settlement The $4.037 billion settlement, also known as the Global Settlement, was announced in August and on Thursday the Supreme Court questioned involved attorneys. Top 10 ways pregnant people in Hawaiʻi can benefit from more birth choices 'We are not against insured or other fire victims that weren't even insured by somebody,' said Mark Grotefeld, attorney for insurance companies said after Thursdayʻs hearing. 'We simply wanna be able to pursue the recovery against those that started this fire. And we're entitled do that under the law.' This ruling clears the way for individual payments to be paid out to fire victims. 'The Supreme Court simply followed clear Hawaii law that mainland subrogation insurers refused to acknowledge. This is the next step in getting relief to the plaintiffs who are the true victims of the Maui Fires,' Jesse Creed of Panish | Shea | Ravipudi LLP told KHON2. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
07-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hawaii Supreme Court hears arguments over Lahaina wildfire victims' global settlement
HONOLULU (KHON2) — The fate of the $4 billion 'Global Settlement' for Lahaina wildfire victims is now in the hands of the Hawaii Supreme Court. Whatever the court decides could have a big impact on everyone in Hawaii. Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news The $4.037 billion Global Settlement was announced in August. On Thursday, Feb, 6, the Hawaii Supreme Court finally had the opportunity to question lawyers about the legality of it. 'It seems like you're crashing directly into State Farm,' said Justice Todd Eddins. Deal reached: How will the $4B Lahaina Global Settlement be split for fire victims? 'If 66-10 does not apply, there's not a tort suit filed, then other subrogation rights would apply, is that correct,' asked Justice Lisa Ginoza. 'What's wrong with this proceeding that it's somehow prejudicial,' asked Chief Justice Mark Recktenwald. At question – are insurance companies allowed to collect money from those at fault for the fires? They said the Global Settlement blocks them from doing that. 'They've been involved every step of the way, they just want a bigger piece of the pie,' said Jesse Creed, attorney for fire victims. 'That's what it comes down to. It's money for them.' 'We are not against insured or other fire victims that weren't even insured by somebody,' said Mark Grotefeld, attorney for insurance companies. 'We simply wanna be able to pursue the recovery against those that started this fire. And we're entitled do that under the law.' 'There's no rights that are being taken away from anyone,' said Cynthia Wong, attorney for victims. 'The Hawaii Supreme Court knows that and they're gonna come up with the process that allows the victims to move forward with this settlement.' After close to two hours of arguments, attorneys for the victims and insurance companies felt confident about their chances and focused on the big-picture ramifications of this ruling. When can wildfire victims get money to start rebuilding? And what happens to Hawaii's home insurance market if the companies can't recoup their losses? 'You remove that safety net for insureds, that becomes a very difficult situation for the citizens of Hawaii,' said Grotefeld. 'And we are working very hard to prevent that from happening. We want that safety net to be maintained and that's really why we're here before this court.''We're dedicated to making sure we get money in the hands of the people of Maui as quickly as we can,' said Creed. Chief Justice Recktenwald acknowledged that the court understands the urgency needed for a decision in this case. Officially, they can take as long as they want. Attorneys hope a ruling is made within a couple of months. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Deal reached: How will the $4B Lahaina Global Settlement be split for fire victims?
HONOLULU (KHON2) — Attorneys for Lahaina wildfire victims came to a 'last minute' agreement on how to split the more than $4 billion Global Settlement. The deal was finalized late Tuesday, Jan. 28, a day before opening statements in that trial were scheduled to start. Download the free KHON2 app for iOS or Android to stay informed on the latest news The Global Settlement between victims of the Lahaina wildfire and the seven defendants is $4.037 billion and we'll soon know how much each victim's share will be. 'Overall, we think it was a realistic and reasonable outcome, and it's going to just be a critical step to getting money into the hands of victims sooner than later,' said Jacob Lowenthal, victims' attorney. How Hawaiian Islands are prepping for severe storm weather Terms of the deal will be detailed in court documents, which are expected to be filed in about a week. This settlement is between attorneys for individual victims and attorneys representing any and all class action lawsuits. Reaching a deal means victims don't have to testify in court. 'There'll be folks that will potentially be disappointed that they didn't have an opportunity to share their story in live court,' said Lowenthal. 'I'm sure there's gonna be some folks that are maybe relieved that they don't have to go to court to share their story and potentially be re-traumatized all over again.' Attorneys said this agreement is a huge step in finalizing the Global Settlement but it's not the last step. Next week, the State Supreme Court is scheduled to hear arguments on whether the insurance companies are allowed to file subrogation claims against the defendants to get reimbursed for the $2 billion-plus in claims they already paid out.'We're looking forward to the next week with the Hawaii Supreme Court because it's just one critical step to finalizing the settlement agreement to getting money in the hands of our clients, who obviously very much need it,' said Lowenthal. Attorneys for insurance companies maintain they're not against the Global Settlement. But they are against any deal that removes their right to subrogation. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
