EAST PALESTINE A federal judge has approved a request by the attorneys for East Palestine train derailment victims to change the legal timeline for holding the former settlement administrator, Kroll Settlement Administrator, LLC, accountable for errors that delayed payments.

U.S. District Judge Benita Pearson issued an order on Tuesday, allowing Class Counsel—the victims' lawyers—to proceed with a civil contempt action against Kroll in two phases. Kroll was removed from its role in June 2025 after the court found sufficient reason to believe it had not adequately administered the $600 million settlement and related court orders.

Class Counsel argued the new, two-step approach was necessary to inform both the court and the community about the ongoing review and to explain why the full p

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