VW Judge Signs Off on $14B Emissions Settlement

Volkswagen-MDL

SAN FRANCISCO – A federal judge on Tuesday granted preliminary approval to a more than $14 billion settlement in the litigation over Volkwagen AG’s cheating of U.S. environmental regulations.

U.S. District Judge Charles Breyer of the Northern District of California expressed satisfaction with elements of the settlement that will allow owners of VW vehicles with 2.0 liter engines to have their cars fixed or bought back by the automaker, as well as component directed at ameliorating the environmental impact of the scandal.

“It appears in your presentation today, as it appeared when you filed your documents, that an enormous effort has been devoted to achieve a series of goals,” Breyer said at the tail end of an almost two hour hearing, where lawyers from Volkwagen, the U.S. government and a class of consumers explained the various facets of the settlement, which was unveiled last month.

“I think from what I’ve seen that those goals have been achieved, and accordingly the court grants preliminary approval,” he said.

Once Breyer formally issues the order, the owners of the roughly 480,000 affected 2.0 liter vehicles will be able to start an online claims process at [url=http://www.vwcourtsettlement.com]