Legal Settlement
The Bradley's estimated value at the time her loss was $8 million. It made her the most costly shipwreck in Great Lakes history. U.S. Steel initially offered $660,000 as a settlement. Family members of the lost crewmen felt that U.S. Steel used the U.S. Coast Guard findings to avoid responsibility for the loss the Bradley. The company believed that their 1959 survey results of the wreck supported their position that the Bradley loss was an "act of God".
Ten families filed lawsuits seeking more than $7 million just weeks after the U.S. Coast Guard report was released. U.S. Steel reached a $1,250,000 lump-sum settlement one year and sixteen days after the Bradley sank. A commissioner was appointed to determine how the settlement money would be divided among the families. The settlement would not guarantee lifelong financial security to the Bradley families. One published source said the settlement was "one of the fastest in maritime history for a case of its scope."
Read more about this topic: SS Carl D. Bradley
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