NEWARK, New Jersey (AP) – A federal judge on Monday granted requests by Nazi-era slave and forced laborers worldwide to dismiss about 50 lawsuits against German companies, removing one of the last hurdles blocking them from compensation offered by Germany and its industries.
The end of those suits, many of which sought class-action status, leaves only a handful of such lawsuits in U.S. courts.
Dismissals are expected on those suits by the end of the year, which would allow payments to begin flowing from a $4.6 billion fund being infused 50-50 by the German government and industry.
It is to be paid to more than 1 million victims – mostly non-Jews from Eastern Europe – of the Nazis’ campaign to keep their factories running as they waged war on Europe.
U.S. District Judge William G. Bassler, before whom nearly all the laborers’ lawsuits brought in U.S. courts were consolidated, told a courtroom packed with about 75 lawyers that he moved quickly – deferring a written opinion – because many of the victims are elderly.
«Any delay means someone does not benefit, and I don’t want that delay on my desk,» Bassler said, noting that many victims are now in their 80s.
«We all know that money cannot compensate for what happened. But it is also a symbol,» he added.
Lawyers for victims and German companies, as well as the U.S. government, urged Bassler to dismiss the claims.
They described the settlement, reached in July in Berlin, as the best resolution for a group that had been ignored in postwar compensation to other victims totaling $100 billion.
«A negotiated settlement can cover many more victims than litigation,» Justice Department lawyer David Anderson said. The non-adversarial foundation would employ a «relaxed standard of proof» so the greatest number of people could benefit, he said.
In general, unpaid workers in concentration camps are considered to have been slave laborers and are to get about $6,600 (15,000 German marks), while those who worked for industrial or commercial enterprises without pay are considered forced laborers and are to get about $2,200 (5,000 German marks).
Heirs are only eligible if the worker died after February 1999, when Germany and its companies agreed to form the fund.
History and worker lawsuits describe conditions for both groups as horrible, with authorities providing little food, clothing or shelter.
After dismissals are complete, perhaps late this year, money can be paid «almost immediately,» said Burt Neuborne, a key lawyer for victims and one of two U.S. representatives on the board of the settlement’s foundation, Remembrance, Responsibility and The Future.
Neuborne, a New York University law professor, was among several victims’ lawyers who were also involved in negotiating the Swiss bank settlement for Holocaust victims.
To date, 4,700 German companies have contributed, but the industry portion of the fund still has a 30 percent shortfall, said Roger M. Witten, a lawyer for a group of leading German firms.
He assured the judge that industry would meet its commitment.
«The money will be there, your honor. I have absolutely no doubt about it,» Witten said.
He said the «vast majority» of contributing companies did not even exist during World War II.
German officials have said payments to survivors would begin even before industry completes its share.
The companies include such firms as Bayer, BMW, DaimlerChrysler, Deutsche Bank, Hoechst, Siemens and Volkswagen, which were sued in U.S. courts because they had operations in this country.
Also contributing are U.S.-based Ford and General Motors, which faced suits stemming from their German operations, although they contend those entities were not under their control during the war years.
The compensation agreement came after about 18 months of negotiations involving the United States, Germany, Israel, Poland, Czech Republic, Belarus, Ukraine, Russia and the Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany.
It provides for worldwide publicity to inform victims how to apply for compensation. Application procedures are being developed.
Prisoners of war are not eligible.
