Volkswagen Litigation Update – 8/25/2016
On August 25, 2016, Judge Breyer held a Status Conference at which the parties updated the Court on the status of the litigation. Lead Counsel for the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee informed the Court that settlement notices for 2.0-liter vehicles have been mailed or emailed to class members, and Judge Breyer urged class members to read and make sure they understand the notices before they made any decisions regarding their Eligible Vehicles. Keller Rohrback, along with the other firms appointed to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee, is available to answer any questions about the Class Action Settlement that current and former owners and lessees of 2.0-liter vehicles may have.
The parties also updated Judge Breyer on the progress toward fixing emissions systems on the 3.0-Liter Class Vehicles and resolving that portion of the litigation. Judge Breyer set a deadline of October 24, 2016, for Volkswagen to propose a fix to the EPA, ordered the parties to begin settlement discussions, appointed former FBI Director Robert Mueller, who served as Settlement Master during the negotiation of the 2.0-liter Settlements, to moderate these discussions, and scheduled another status conference on these issues for November 3, 2016, with the goal of pushing the 3.0-liter portion of the case toward resolution by settlement or trial.
Judge Breyer will hold another hearing on October 18, 2016 to decide whether to grant final approval of the 2.0-liter Settlements. When and if final approval is granted, class members will be able to finalize their claims submissions and begin scheduling appointments for buybacks, lease terminations, or approved vehicle modifications, and, for eligible sellers and former lessees, to finalize their claims in order to receive compensation payments.
Additional information can be found on the Court’s website: http://www.cand.uscourts.gov/crb/vwmdl.