South Mississippians Pleased with Chinese Drywall Settlement

GULFPORT, MS (WLOX) - A court settlement was announced Thursday for those with Knauf Chinese drywall, and it involves hundreds of millions of dollars.

Leo Romano is one of the members of that class action lawsuit. He said Thursday news means he can finally take steps toward getting tainted Chinese drywall removed from his Gulfport home.

"This has been a nightmare," Romano said.

The Gulfport homeowner claims the faulty drywall was put in after Hurricane Katrina. Since then, he said it has caused lots of physical and financial problems.

"And last month or so, my wife and I had difficulty with respiratory issues."

Ocean Springs attorney Steve Mullins represents Romano and more than a thousand other gulf coast victims in this class action lawsuit.

"It is a complicated issue because it involves builders, owners, supply companies, German companies, insurance companies, anything you can possibly imagine, and homeowners," Mullins said about the ongoing litigation. "It has taken an exceptionally long time to work it out."

Mullins said hearing the news that a major settlement has been reached is just what his clients needed to hear.

"Thank God," Mullins said. "About time, yes. It is like a feeling of relief."

There are three funds set up under this new settlement agreement to reimburse homeowners for their losses. All together, those funds could exceed more than a billion dollars.

"One is for economic loss, for people that have lost money as a result of this, and personal injuries. And that fund is at $30 million. There is also a fund that is important to clients that will pay attorney fees and expenses, so no one is out of pocket," Mullins said about the terms of the agreement. "Then there is an unlimited, uncapped fund that is estimated at $800 million to a billion. I think it's going to be substantially north of a billion for people to fix their homes."

Leo Romano said this is the best Christmas present that he could ask for this year. And he's happy that so many victims, like himself, came out winners after such a hard fight.

"We were confident that there was going to be a remedy at some point," Romano said.

Before any money is distributed, the judge in the case must still sign-off on the settlement, which we understand will be June at the earliest. It is also important to note this settlement only involves those with Knauf brand drywall.