Settlement for almost $1 billion reached in Surfside condominium collapse case

An attorney for the plaintiffs in the class action lawsuit against insurance companies, developers of an adjacent building and other defendants involved in the Surfside, Florida condominium collapse in June last year that killed 98 people.

While announcing the settlement, attorney Harley Tropin said “I’m shocked by this result. I think it’s fantastic. This is a recovery that is far in excess of what I had anticipated.” The judge in the case, Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Michael Hanzman, had previously approved a settlement amount of $83 million for the victims of the collapse who had suffered economic and financial losses due to the incident.

The latest settlement is not finalized yet, and is still subject to court approval, but after heavy negotiations about how the funds will be distributed, victims could potentially begin seeing compensation by the end of the week. 

Champlain Towers South partially collapsed on June 24, stripping hundreds of people of their homes and belongings, and killing 98.

Since the collapse, Florida lawmakers have passed new legislation that requires regular inspection of structures over 3 floors high, and more frequent inspections for those closer to the shore. At the time of the collapse, only two counties in Florida, Broward and Miami-Dade had any sort of condominium recertification programs.

The lawsuit, filed by victims and families of victims in the June collapse, claims construction work on Eighty Seven Park tower, next door, partly prompted the tower to fall. Investigations since the collapse have also shown Champlain Towers South, which was in the middle of its 40-year inspection and recertification when it fell, was in dire need of some structural repairs.