Pacific Power Announces 2020 Labor Day Wildfire Settlement – KXL

PORTLAND, OR – On Wednesday, Pacific Power parent company PacifiCorp announced they have reached a $150 million settlement with 1,434 plaintiffs associated with 2020 Labor Day 2020.

“We are doing the responsible thing and we are gratified to resolve these claims to provide plaintiffs with some closure to move on,” said Ryan Flynn, Pacific Power president. “The process that led to this settlement represents the fairest and most efficient way to resolve wildfire litigation. Class action litigation is costly, complex, takes several years to run its course and is a barrier to reasonable outcomes.”

PacifiCorp officials say the company has settled nearly 4,200 wildfire claims for $1.6 billion since 2020, which represents approximately 70 percent of individual claims in California and Oregon. They note that the majority of the remaining claims are a part of the James class action litigation.

The plantiffs in the $150 million settlement have been represented by the Warren Allen, Swigart Law Group and Spreter | Petiprin law firms.

“We are glad to have reached reasonable settlements with PacifiCorp for our current clients,” said George McCoy, an attorney at Warren Allen. “Those outcomes reflect a shared commitment with PacifiCorp to resolving disputes through a principled approach that serves affected Oregon communities. This matter will not be resolved through targeted or punitive legislation. It will not be resolved through a drawn-out trial process. Rather, it will be resolved by continuing the collaborative problem-solving approach used to reach this agreement that benefits Oregonians. We will continue our efforts to help rebuild Oregon communities recovering from the 2020 Labor Day wildfires.”

“This settlement between plaintiffs’ counsel and PacifiCorp demonstrates that the parties can come to the table and work out agreements to compensate Oregonians impacted by wildfire,” said Oregon Representative Pam Marsh, D-Ashland. “We need our utilities to keep the lights on and to make continued investments building out the electrical grid to support growth throughout our state. To do that, they must be in a place where the market and investors see them as stable.”