A judge awarded about $40 million Friday to the lead attorneys in a $626 million settlement for Flint residents and property owners whose water was contaminated with lead, but millions in additional legal fees will also be carved out as claimants get paid.
The decision is one of the last major rulings in a landmark deal to settle lawsuits against Flint and the state of Michigan over the failure to properly treat corrosive water from the Flint River before it flowed through pipes in 2014-15, releasing lead along the way.
