EAST PALESTINE — The five residents appealing the $600 million class action settlement between Norfolk Southern and impacted community members in the wake of the 2023 train derailment and subsequent chemical release will be required to post an $850,000 appeal bond, Judge Benita Pearson ruled Thursday in U.S. District Court in Youngstown.

“Within 14 days of entry of this Order, appellants Rev. Joseph Sheely, Zsuzsa Troyan, Tamara Freeze, Sharon Lynch and Carly Tunno shall each contribute $170,000 towards a total bond of $850,000 to be posted with the Clerk of Court to protect the interests of the class and ensure payment of costs on appeal,” Perason ruled. “The appeal bond shall be the responsibility of all appellants. If any appellant withdraws their appeal, the remaining appellants are responsible for the entire bond amount.”

Tennessee-based attorney David Graham argued on behalf of the five appellants that ordering a bond of nearly $1 million would force his clients to abandon their appeal as they were in no position to afford such a sum before the derailment much less after suffering financial hardships as a direct cause of it.

Pearson dismissed the notion that an appeal bond was a “barrier” to the appellants in pursuing their rights to appeal her final approval of the landmark settlement granted in September. She noted that it is the appellant’s burden to demonstrate that a bond would constitute a barrier to appeal.

“An appeal bond, in this case, is a guardrail, not a barrier. Despite having been made aware of the possibility of an appeal bond, appellants proceeded,” she wrote. “That alone belies their argument that an appeal bond would be a barrier. Thus ‘appellants financial ability to post a bond’ does not detract from the imposition of an appeal bond in the requested amount. Rather, the court finds an appeal bond in the amount requested is an appropriate response to the costly circumstances the appeals trigger.”

The bulk of the appeal bond — $825,000 — is the amount Kroll Settlement Administration maintains an appeal would generate for the New York firm processing the 55,000 claims made against the settlement. According to final approval documents, without any appeal, Kroll stands to pocket up to

$20 million for doing so.

While many residents celebrated the order for an appeal bond in hopes the ruling would quash the appellants’ appeal efforts and lead to faster distribution of the direct funds that could be held up for two years while the appeal process plays out, others questioned the amount of Kroll’s additional fees because of an appeal.

The announcement of the bond requirement caused a flurry of social media posts from residents, ranging from relief to indignation — as many are still awaiting payment for personal injury payments that were not subject to appeal and were initially promised to be paid out within 30 days of final approval. Most of that anger has been leveled at Kroll and a payout process that has proved to be much slower than what was lauded by class co-counsel.

Kroll also has come under fire from residents who say they have had to refile paperwork and revisit the claim center on Rebecca Street in East Palestine.

numerous times. Some who have received their payments report their awards were much lower than what they were told they would receive by Kroll employees at the claim center.

Aside from the $825,000 of additional fees to Kroll, Pearson’s ruling signed off on $25,000 that class co-counsel estimated “in taxable expense for the appeal.” Those expenses include docket fees and printing and copying costs during the appeal writing and oral argument stages.

In her ruling, Pearson notes that the “court awarded only 3% of the settlement fund for costs” for the co-counsel and that “costs are already anticipated to be more than the 3% awarded. The appeal costs increase the likelihood of that overage.” That percentage, though small on paper, calculated to $18 million. Coupled with the legal fees of 27% (or $162 million) of the $600 million settlement, the attorneys who brokered the deal on behalf of the residents were awarded $180 million for their work.