A judge on Monday approved a liquidation plan that includes a $17.1 million fund for Harvey Weinstein’s accusers, nearly three years after the Weinstein Co. declared bankruptcy.
The agreement also includes $9.7 million for the former Weinstein Co. officials and directors, which will help them cover some of their long-term legal expenses. Additionally, the directors and officers, which also included Bob Weinstein, James Dolan, Tarak Ben Ammar, and Lance Maerov, got waivers that relieve them from any potential culpability for supporting Weinstein’s behavior.
After a hearing in Delaware, U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Mary Walrath accepted the agreement, stating that Weinstein’s accusers would receive “little if any, recompense” without the settlement.
The liquidation proposal puts an end to a bitter and protracted legal battle over the remaining assets of Weinstein’s independent production company. After the exposure of several allegations of rape, sexual assault, harassment, and other wrongdoing in late 2017, the company went out of business.
The remaining claims, including those from the trade creditors of the Weinstein Co., will be settled with a combined payment of $35.2 million from several insurance companies.
More than 50 claimants will share in the $17 million fund, with the most serious allegations receiving compensation of $500,000 or more. 39 of Weinstein’s accusers voted in favor of the settlement, while eight abstained.
Ruby Liu, a lawyer for the objectors, said on Monday that the compensation money is “meager” and that her clients will no longer be able to sue Bob Weinstein and other directors as a result of the agreement.
My clients are looking for more than just financial benefits, she claimed. “They want a jury’s verdict to hold everyone accountable who is at fault. not just Harvey Weinstein, however.”
