HONOLULU (AP) — A Maui judge’s ruling Tuesday resolves a critical roadblock to finalizing a $4 billion wildfire settlement: Insurance companies who have paid out more than $2 billion in claims can seek reimbursement only from the settlement amount defendants, who victims blame for causing the deadly tragedy, have agreed to pay.
Lawyers representing plaintiffs in hundreds of lawsuits over the deaths and destruction caused by the fires asked the judge to bar insurers from bringing independent legal action to recoup the money paid to policyholders. Preventing insurers from going after the defendants is a key settlement term.
The settlement was reached earlier this month, days before the one-year anniversary of the the fires, amid fears that Hawaiian Electric, the power company that some blame for sparking the blaze, could be on the brink of bankruptcy. Other defendants include Maui County and large landowners.
The federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives is investigating the Aug. 8, 2023, fires that killed 102 people, destroyed the historic downtown area of Lahaina, burned thousands of homes and displaced 12,000 people.
Plaintiff lawyers were worried allowing insurers to pursue reimbursement separately would be a deal-breaker, drain what is available to pay fire victims and lead to prolonged litigation.
A group of more than 160 property and casualty insurers that have so far paid more than $2.34 billion to people and businesses devastated by the fires remained as holdouts to the settlement.
Jesse Creed, an attorney serving as one of four liaisons for the coordination of the plaintiffs’ lawsuits, told Cahill the insurers want to get court judgements for enormous damages, "and leave a carcass for the plaintiffs.”
Insurer lawyers argued in court filings that what they called the rush to push through a settlement deprives the insurers of their due process.
The insurance industry has been unfairly villainized as outsiders taking resources from the community while those responsible for the fires won't be held accountable, Vincent Raboteau, an attorney representing the insurers, told the judge.
“And we’re not arguing to be first in line for anything,” he said. “It’s always been our position that individual plaintiffs should get the lion’s share.
After the hearing, Raboteau declined to comment on Cahill's ruling and wouldn't say whether they plan to seek review of Cahill's ruling by the Hawaii Supreme Court.
“We humbly ask the mainland subrogation attorneys to accept what Judge Cahill has made clear, which is no one should stand in the way of our people’s full recovery," Gov. Josh Green said in a statement Tuesday night. "The world has changed as a result of climate forces, and we need to work together - states, insurers, attorneys - to create better ways for people to settle differences so they can address risks and recover when necessary.”
Jake Lowenthal, another liaison attorney for the plaintiffs, said they are heartened by Cahill's ruling.
“This is going to be a critical part in reaching a final resolution of everyone’s claims as well as resolving the insurance companies’ potential rights of reimbursement," he said.
FILE - Damaged property lies scattered in the aftermath of a wildfire in Lahaina, Hawaii, Aug. 21, 2023. A Maui judge’s ruling Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2024, resolves a critical roadblock to finalizing a $4 billion wildfire settlement. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong, File)
PRAGUE (AP) — The head of NATO's military committee said Saturday that Ukraine has the solid legal and military right to strike deep inside Russia to gain combat advantage — reflecting the beliefs of a number of U.S. allies — even as the Biden administration balks at allowing Kyiv to do so using American-made weapons.
“Every nation that is attacked has the right to defend itself. And that right doesn’t stop at the border of your own nation,” said Adm. Rob Bauer, speaking at the close of the committee's annual meeting, also attended by U.S. Gen. CQ Brown, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
Bauer, of Netherlands, also added that nations have the sovereign right to put limits on the weapons they send to Ukraine. But, standing next to him at a press briefing, Lt. Gen. Karel Řehka, chief of the General Staff of the Czech Armed Forces, made it clear his nation places no such weapons restrictions on Kyiv.
“We believe that the Ukrainians should decide themselves how to use it,” Řehka said.
Their comments came as U.S. President Joe Biden is weighing whether to allow Ukraine to use American-provided long-range weapons to hit deep into Russia. And they hint at the divisions over the issue.
Biden met with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday, after this week’s visit to Kyiv by their top diplomats, who came under fresh pressure to loosen weapons restrictions. U.S. officials familiar with discussions said they believed Starmer was seeking Biden’s approval to allow Ukraine to use British Storm Shadow missiles for expanded strikes in Russia.
Biden’s approval may be needed because Storm Shadow components are made in the U.S. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to share the status of private conversations, said they believed Biden would be amenable, but there has been no decision announced yet.
Providing additional support and training for Ukraine was a key topic at the NATO chiefs’ meeting, but it wasn't clear Saturday if the debate over the U.S. restrictions was discussed.
Many of the European nations have been vigorously supportive of Ukraine in part because they worry about being the next victim of an empowered Russia.
At the opening of the meeting, Czech Republic President Petr Pavel broadly urged the military chiefs gathered in the room to be ”bold and open in articulating your assessments and recommendations. The rounder and the softer they are, the less they will be understood by the political level.”
The allies, he said, must “take the right steps and the right decisions to protect our countries and our way of life.”
The military leaders routinely develop plans and recommendations that are then sent to the civilian NATO defense secretaries for discussion and then on to the nations' leaders in the alliance.
The U.S. allows Ukraine to use American-provided weapons in cross-border strikes to counter attacks by Russian forces. But it doesn’t allow Kyiv to fire long-range missiles, such as the ATACMS, deep into Russia. The U.S. has argued that Ukraine has drones that can strike far and should use ATACMS judiciously because they only have a limited number.
Ukraine has increased its pleas with Washington to lift the restrictions, particularly as winter looms and Kyiv worries about Russian gains during the colder months.
“You want to weaken the enemy that attacks you in order to not only fight the arrows that come your way, but also attack the archer that is, as we see, very often operating from Russia proper into Ukraine,” said Bauer. “So militarily, there’s a good reason to do that, to weaken the enemy, to weaken its logistic lines, fuel, ammunition that comes to the front. That is what you want to stop, if at all possible.”
Brown, for his part, told reporters traveling with him to the meeting that the U.S. policy on long-range weapons remains in place.
But, he added, “by the same token, what we want to do is — regardless of that policy — we want to continue to make Ukraine successful with the capabilities that have been provided” by the U.S. and other nations in the coalition, as well as the weapons Kyiv has been able to build itself.
“They’ve proven themselves fairly effective in building out uncrewed aerial vehicles, in building out drones,” Brown told reporters traveling with him to meetings in Europe.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has made similar points, arguing that one weapons system won't determine success in the war.
“There are a number of things that go into the overall equation as to whether or not you know you want to provide one capability or another," Austin said Friday. “There is no silver bullet when it comes to things like this.”
He also noted that Ukraine has already been able to strike inside Russia with its own internally produced systems, including drones.
FILE - Rescuers search for victims in an apartment building destroyed by Russian missile attack in centre Lviv, Western Ukraine, Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Mykola Tys, File)
FILE - NATO's Chair of the Military Committee Admiral Rob Bauer listens during the plenary session of the Seoul Defense Dialogue in Seoul, South Korea, Sept. 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
