MGM Resorts, Las Vegas Shooting Victims Reach $800 Million Settlement

MGM Resorts International and the victims of the shooting at the Route 91 Harvest Festival on Oct. 1, 2017, have reached a settlement. The resort company will pay between $735 million and $800 million to settle lawsuits related to the mass shooting, during which 58 people were killed and more than 800 others were injured.

MGM Resorts International owns both the Mandalay Bay resort hotel and casino, from which shooter Stephen Paddock opened fire on festivalgoers at the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Festival, and the Las Vegas Strip-based festival grounds at which the event was taking place. CNN reports that the company maintains that this settlement -- which was announced on Thursday (Oct. 3), two days after the second anniversary of the tragedy -- is not an admission of liability in the shooting, but rather a move to avoid drawing out the legal process related to the lawsuits.

"Our goal has always been to resolve these matters so our community and the victims and their families can move forward in the healing process. This agreement with the Plaintiffs' Counsel is a major step, and one that we hoped for a long time would be possible," says MGM Resorts Chairman and CEO Jim Murren. "We have always believed that prolonged litigation around these matters is in no one's best interest. It is our sincere hope that this agreement means that scenario will be avoided."

Says Robert Eglet, a lead attorney for the victims, "While nothing will be able to bring back the lives lost or undo the horrors so many suffered on that day, this settlement will provide fair compensation for thousands of victims and their families. MGM Resorts is a valued member of the Las Vegas community and this settlement represents good corporate citizenship on their part. We believe that the terms of this settlement represent the best outcome for our clients and will provide the greatest good for those impacted by these events."

CNN explains that, in a regulatory filing released in May, MGM Resorts International stated that the company could pay as much as $800 million for the Route 91 shooting-related lawsuits. The company holds $751 million in insurance that could help cover the cost.

Headliner Jason Aldean was onstage for the final performance of the 2017 Route 91 Harvest Festival when the shooting, which remains the deadliest non-war mass shooting in U.S. history, took place. In August of 2018, the FBI closed its investigation into the tragedy without uncovering a motive. In early September, it was announced that the festival grounds will be turned into, among other things, a community center.

Remembering the Route 91 Harvest Festival Shooting Victims