Almost every 9/11 family took the payout, so there was never a trial
Only 94 eligible claimants chose lawsuits over a guaranteed check, and those cases settled too.
Original Jurisdiction · Resolving The Unresolvable: Kenneth FeinbergAlmost every family eligible for compensation after Sept. 11, 2001, took the government's money instead of suing.
Kenneth Feinberg, the Washington lawyer asked by the White House to create and oversee the federal September 11 Victim Compensation Fund, says 5,300 people were eligible, about 2,950 in death cases and the rest for physical injuries. Ninety-seven percent voluntarily accepted taxpayer funded compensation. Only 94 people opted out.
The trade was explicit. Taking the money meant giving up the right to sue. Congress had created the voluntary, no fault system just 13 days after the attacks to move claims out of court, and it worked. The 94 lawsuits all settled about five years later, so there was never a trial over who was legally responsible for 9/11.
Questions people ask
Why did Congress want to keep 9/11 cases out of court?
Lawmakers wanted to get money to families quickly and without years of uncertain litigation. They also wanted to protect the airlines, which faced potentially ruinous lawsuits, from collapse at a moment when air travel and the wider economy were already in shock.
How much money did families receive?
Awards were based on lost earnings, pain and suffering, and offsets like life insurance, so they varied widely. Death awards averaged a little over $2 million, with a range from about $250,000 to more than $7 million, and injury awards were generally smaller.
Was that the end of compensation for 9/11?
No. Congress reopened the fund in 2011, and again in 2019, to cover rescue workers, cleanup crews, and survivors who later developed cancers, respiratory illnesses, and other conditions tied to the attacks. That extended fund is authorized through 2092 and has paid many billions more.