The company aims to pay over $1B in penalties and safety improvements via its settlement with the Department of Justice.

By Caleb Revill

A three-year-long criminal negligence lawsuit against Boeing has had its upcoming trial day scratched by a federal judge after the company recently agreed to a settlement with the Department of Justice.

On Tuesday, presiding U.S. District Court Judge Reed O’Connor approved a motion to cancel the case’s upcoming trial date, according to court documents obtained by AirlineGeeks.

The DOJ filed a joint motion alongside Boeing to dismiss the case along with a motion to cancel the trial on Thursday after the two parties negotiated a settlement.

Per the agreement, Boeing will pay over $1 billion in penalties and safety investments while avoiding any criminal charges. $444.5 million of those penalties will go to a crash-victim beneficiaries fund to compensate the victims’ families.

“Boeing is committed to complying with its obligations under this resolution, which include a substantial additional fine and commitments to further institutional improvements and investments,” a Boeing spokesperson told AirlineGeeks in an emailed statement.

“The resolution also provides for substantial additional compensation for the families of those lost in the Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 accidents.”

“ We are deeply sorry for their losses, and remain committed to honoring their loved ones’ memories by pressing forward with the broad and deep changes to our company that we have made to strengthen our safety system and culture.”

Attorney Erin Applebaum, a partner at the law firm representing the 34 families who lost loved ones in 2019’s Ethiopian Airlines crash, had previously decried the settlement motion as a “backroom deal” that allowed Boeing to avoid accountability.

“This isn’t justice,” she told AirlineGeeks in an emailed statement when reports of a settlement were emerging. “

“It’s a backroom deal dressed up as a legal proceeding, and it sends a dangerous message: in America, the rich and powerful can buy their way out of accountability.”

Judge O’Connor hasn’t yet made an order on whether or not to dismiss the case in its entirety. He will only rule on dismissal after considering both sides’ arguments.

The lawsuit, filed on January 7, 2021, alleged Boeing was criminally negligent regarding two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019. It was scheduled to go to trial on June 23 by after Boeing backed out of a guilty plea agreement in March.