Parties to Chinese Drywall Litigation Announce New Settlement Program

NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 16, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The Plaintiffs' Steering Committee (PSC), the Homebuilder Steering Committee (HSC) and Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin (KPT) today jointly announced another positive step in the ongoing commitment to the resolution of the Chinese drywall problem. Under this new agreement, KPT will partner with select major homebuilders to repair 200-300 homes these builders initially constructed with KPT drywall.

This settlement was developed in direct collaboration with the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee (PSC), the attorneys appointed by the Court to represent affected homeowners, and the Homebuilder Steering Committee (HSC), the attorneys appointed by the Court to represent builders. The members of the PSC involved in negotiating the agreement include Arnold Levin of Levin, Fishbein, Sedran & Berman; Russ M. Herman of Herman, Herman, Katz & Cotlar, L.L.P.; and Bruce W. Steckler of Baron & Budd, P.C. Hillarie Bass of Greenberg Traurig LLP, the chair of the HSC, participated for the HSC.

"We're pleased to announce that even more homeowners soon will experience resolution of the Chinese drywall issue," noted Arnold Levin of Levin, Fishbein, Sedran & Berman. "We view this new settlement as a positive step in the right direction, with the PSC and KPT continuing to work cooperatively together and provide solutions that are in the homeowners' best interests."

"The major homebuilders have always been repairing homes containing problem Knauf Chinese drywall for all homeowners who would allow us to do so," said Hillarie Bass of Greenberg Traurig LLP. "These agreements will allow these homebuilders to remediate additional homes containing Knauf Chinese drywall as well as ensure that Knauf reimburses these homebuilders for certain costs they incurred as part of this remediation process. We are glad to work with the PSC to get these additional homes repaired."

"From the outset, KPT has been working hard to devise a comprehensive and efficient approach to resolve the problematic and complex issues arising from Chinese drywall. This settlement is just another example of those ongoing efforts," said Gregory J. Wallance of Kaye Scholer LLP and Kerry J. Miller of Frilot, LLC, on behalf of KPT. "We have always believed that the drywall problem was best solved through a collaborative effort involving all parties rather than a courtroom."

In addition to the homes participating in this new settlement, more than 1,200 homes are progressing through the KPT demonstration remediation program that was announced as part of the Chinese drywall Multi-District Litigation (MDL) out of New Orleans.

For further information from the PSC, contact:

Meri Monsour,
Hoffman/Miller Advertising
(504) 484-3442 and [email protected]

For further information from the HSC, contact:

Hillarie Bass,
Greenberg Traurig LLP
(305) 579-0745 and [email protected]

For further information from KPT, contact:

Kate Young,
Edelman
(312) 240-2658 and [email protected]

SOURCE Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee; Homebuilder Steering Committee; Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin