Update (4/30/08): Checks are being mailed today to qualified claimants, and should be received shortly.

Update (4/2/08): We are diligently working through the final phases of the claims processing, and expect checks to mail to verified claimants in late April. Many thanks for your continued patience.

Update: Please be patient while we analyze and process claims. We will update this website with information about the schedule for mailing settlement payments at the appropriate time. If we have questions regarding your claim, we will contact you in writing. Thank you.

Update: The deadline for submitting claim forms has passed.

Update: At the October 9, 2007 Fairness Hearing, the Court granted final approval to the Settlement. Parties anticipate that payments will be made to eligible claimants by the end of the year. Please refer to the Final Approval Order for additional details.

The Court has determined that residents of Minot, North Dakota, and the nearby area, have the right to know about a proposed settlement of a class action lawsuit, and about your options with regard to the proposed settlement, before the Court decides whether to approve the settlement. If the Court approves the settlement and after objections and appeals are resolved, the Claims Administrator appointed by the Court will make payments as the settlement allows. The notice explains the lawsuit, the settlement, your legal rights, what benefits are available, who is eligible for the benefits and how to receive the benefits.

The lawsuit involves a Canadian Pacific train derailment on January 18, 2002. The crash caused a massive cloud of anhydrous ammonia to blanket Minot, North Dakota. The lawsuit sought money for people who had not already settled their claim with the railroad or filed their own individual lawsuit or retained their won lawyer to make a claim.

The Court has decided that everyone who fits the following description is a member of the Class;

All persons who were exposed to the anhydrous ammonia cloud in and around the city of Minot, North Dakota, and who were adversely affected by the release of the hazardous chemical on January 18, 2002, and who have sustained property damages, property value diminution, personal injuries, and economic or non-economic damages as a result of the derailment and hazardous chemical release.

This case was dismissed by the Court in March 2006. In that dismissal, the Court found that people injured by a railroad’s negligence could not seek a legal remedy. Plaintiffs appealed that decision to the United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. While on appeal the parties agreed to the settlement. The Class Representatives and the attorneys think the settlement is best for everyone who was affected.

To qualify for payment you must send in a claim form. Please note that the deadline for submitting claim forms has passed. In order to participate in the benefits the settlement provides, you must have mailed the claim form, postmarked on or before November 8, 2007. Each adult family must submit a separate signed claim form. Claims submitted for children must be submitted by a parent or legal guardian.