Flint contractor agrees to settlement of lead contamination lawsuits

By Ed White
Associated Press

DETROIT (AP) — An engineering company accused of being partially responsible for Flint's lead-contaminated water in 2014-15 has agreed to settle lawsuits brought by some residents of the Michigan city, attorneys said Thursday.

Lockwood, Andrews, & Newman, an engineering firm known as LAN, said in a court filing that a confidential deal was reached with residents in federal court but that both sides need more time to iron out the details.

Separately, LAN reached a deal in a different lawsuit that Michigan's attorney general filed in state court.

Flint families sued LAN and another contractor, Veolia North America, accusing them of not doing enough to get Flint to treat highly corrosive water or to urge a return to a regional water supplier.

Flint, which was under state-appointed managers, used the Flint River for water in 2014-15, but the water wasn't treated the same as water previously supplied by a Detroit-area provider. As a result, lead leached throughout the vast pipe system.

LAN has repeatedly defended its work while under contract with Flint and denied responsibility, though it settled a lawsuit with four families in December, months after a jury couldn't reach a verdict.
An email seeking comment about the new settlement was sent to LAN.

An attorney for Flint residents, Corey Stern, said he couldn't comment on what LAN has agreed to pay. He said the goal is to weave it into a larger, separate $626 million settlement between families and the state of Michigan.

"So people can be paid once and this can be administered at the same time," Stern said.

The state was sued because environmental regulators and other officials missed opportunities to fix Flint's water problems during the lead crisis.