The settlement had been held up by insurance companies who had hoped to go after those being held liable for the massive blaze to recoup some of the insurance payments made to Maui homeowners and businesses.

Hawaii’s Supreme Court has ruled that insurance companies can’t bring their own legal actions against those blamed for Maui’s catastrophic 2023 wildfire, the deadliest in the U.S. in more than a century.

A major roadblock to the $4 billion global settlement for the Maui wildfires has been cleared. A lawyer representing victims says it could mean that survivors receive their first settlement payments by the end of the year.