So far, six plaintiffs among the 16 plaintiffs who have lawsuits pending against the estate of Nancy Lanza have received probate court approval for settlements of their civil actions.

The lawsuits stem from the December 14, 2012, shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School, in which Ms Lanza’s son, Adam Lanza, 20, shot and killed 20 first grade students and six educators.

Attorney Angelo A. Ziotas of Silver Golub & Teitell LLP of Stamford said that Probate Judge Joseph A. Egan, Jr, of the Northern Fairfield County probate district has approved settlements for six of the 16 lawsuits.

Mr Ziotas said he expects that all 16 settlements would be approved by the probate courts by early October, as the various cases proceed through the legal review process.

Mr Ziotas represents the estate of James Mattioli, one of the 16 plaintiffs.

Under the terms of a proposed settlement of the 16 claims, each plaintiff would receive nearly $94,000.

The 16 plaintiffs in the legal action are the estates of James Mattioli, Charlotte Bacon, Grace McDonnell, Emilie Parker, Jack Pinto, Jessica Rekos, Daniel Barden, Dylan Hockley, Jesse Lewis, Benjamin Wheeler, Avielle Richman, and Noah Pozner, all 12 of whom were students on 12/4; and the estates of educators Rachel D’Avino, Lauren Rousseau, Mary Sherlach, and Victoria Soto.

The plaintiffs who have received court approvals for lawsuit settlements are the estates of James Mattioli, Charlotte Bacon, Grace McDonnell, Emilie Parker, Jack Pinto, and Jessica Rekos, according to Mr Ziotas. 

Under the terms of the proposed settlement, the 16 plaintiffs each would receive equal portions of the $1.5 million value of a home insurance policy that Nancy Lanza had on her house at 36 Yogananda Street. When that amount is divided by 16, each of the plaintiffs would receive $93,750.

The defendant named in the lawsuits is Samuel Starks, the administrator of Nancy Lanza’s estate.

Allegations

One of the lawsuits claims that Nancy Lanza exhibited “carelessness and negligence,” resulting in the shooting incident.

According to a lawsuit against the estate, Ms Lanza, at some point before the shooting incident, bought a Bushmaster AR-15-style semiautomatic rifle.

“The weapon was an assault rifle designed for military use in modern warfare. The Bushmaster was built to spray rapid fire and pierce body armor in order to inflict maximum casualties on the battlefield, but was sold to the general public by its manufacturer and various other business entities, even though it had no practical civilian purpose for self-defense or reasonable sporting activities,” the suit states.

Nancy Lanza kept the gun stored unsecured in her home where Adam Lanza had access to it, the lawsuit adds.

Adam Lanza’s access to that gun was a “substantial factor” in the deaths and injuries of the plaintiffs, according to the court papers.

According to a lawsuit filed on behalf of the Mattioli estate, “the carelessness and negligence of Nancy Lanza” caused the injuries and deaths, in that she failed to adequately lock up or otherwise adequately secure the gun in her home.

The Mattioli lawsuit adds that Nancy Lanza allowed her son access to the weapon, although she knew or should have known that “his mental and emotional condition made him a danger to others.”

“Nancy Lanza’s actions were a substantial factor leading to the injuries and death” on 12/14, it adds.

The Town of Newtown acquired the Lanza home for $1 from the bank which held its mortgage. The town demolished the house in March.

Other lawsuits stemming from the 12/14 incident are pending against the manufacturer of the AR-15 rifle and against the Town of Newtown.