June 27, 2025

Settlement fund update: Fighting for a fair and neutral process

To Our Clients—

We are reaching out to provide you with an update on the Settlement Fund.

The state budget process has been running its course over the past several weeks. During this time, lawmakers have been evaluating the Settlement Fund and discussing potential changes. We have been advocating on your behalf with the lawmakers to support a system we believe will best serve you.

Despite our best efforts, the legislature passed a budget bill Thursday making changes to the Settlement Fund that are not in your best interests. The bill makes the YDC Settlement Fund administrator a politically appointed position. This means, when the bill becomes law, the governor will have the ability to pick the administrator for the fund, instead of the administrator being picked by the Supreme Court.

Once Governor Kelly Ayotte signs the bill, she and Attorney General John Formella will have the power to fire the current administrator, John Broderick, and we fully expect them to do so.

This change is unacceptable. It breaks the central promise of the Settlement Fund: that survivors have an opportunity to have their claims decided fairly by an independent, neutral third party without any stake in the outcome. This change makes the administrator subject to political pressure from the state—the defendant in your cases. It is like allowing a defendant to pick their own judge.

Our other concerns:

• Going forward, if the governor does not like the Settlement Fund award decisions (for example, if she thinks the awards are too high), then she can replace the administrator at will. Also, the new amendment allows the attorney general to reject an award if he thinks it is too high.
• This proposal was introduced and voted on with no advance notice, and no opportunity for the public to weigh in.
• The legislature made these changes even though a state audit recently found the fund is running exactly as intended, and hundreds of our clients have already received their award decisions free of state interference.

Our team at Nixon Peabody and Rilee & Associates has also made a promise to you—to fight for a victim-friendly process that will provide fair compensation for the abuse you endured during your time in state custody. Unlike the state, we have no intention of breaking our promise. We are going to fight the state’s unjust change.

Today, we filed a class-action lawsuit against the state on behalf of all YDC claimants who are active in the Settlement Fund process. This includes many of you, and other survivors like you, who opted into the Settlement Fund, paused their court cases, and are still awaiting decisions on their awards.

The lawsuit aims to stop Governor Ayotte and Attorney General Formella from firing Administrator Broderick and replacing him with their own appointee.

Our goal is to keep the Settlement Fund running smoothly, with an independent administrator who determines awards fairly, based on facts and free of government influence.

Where the Settlement Fund stands now

As of now, nothing about the Settlement Fund process has changed. John Broderick remains the administrator, Diane Nicolosi is the assistant administrator, and their office is continuing to review claims as before.

While nearly 330 claimants have already received awards, others who entered the fund on the same terms are still in limbo, awaiting an award from the administrator. Survivors who opted into the Settlement Fund did so believing they would benefit from an impartial process. We want to ensure this benefit stays intact, which is why we are fighting the state’s efforts to undermine it. Our team believes we have a strong legal argument against these changes.

The statute that created the Settlement Fund created an agreement between you and the State of New Hampshire, and the law is clear that the state cannot change the terms of its contracts after the fact to benefit itself. While the court considers the merits of our arguments, we have also asked it to enter a temporary restraining order, which is an order that would prevent Governor Ayotte from firing Administrator Broderick and keep the status quo in place until the court has had the chance to rule on our lawsuit.

How this impacts you

• If you opted into the Settlement Fund but have not yet received a decision on your award:
  If you have submitted a claim to the Settlement Fund and are still awaiting a decision from the administrator, you are automatically listed as a claimant in our class-action lawsuit against the state’s proposed amendments to the Settlement Fund. You do not need to take any action. If successful, our lawsuit will preserve your right to an impartial administrator who will determine your award amount.

• If you opted into the Settlement Fund and have received a decision on your award:
  You are unaffected by the potential changes to the Settlement Fund. The decision you received under the existing rules—which you can choose to accept or reject—was made by an impartial administrator. You are not listed as a claimant in our class-action lawsuit against the state’s proposed amendments to the Fund.

• Once you receive a Settlement Fund decision, you are no longer listed as a claimant in the class-action lawsuit. Rest assured your award decision was made in good faith under the original agreement to appoint an impartial administrator.

We greatly appreciate your patience and support as we work through this next step in our pursuit of justice. We will continue to keep you informed as this class-action lawsuit progresses. Be sure to check the Case Status app for the latest updates. You can also call the main Nixon Peabody phone number (603-628-4060) and ask to be connected to the YDC Client Update line to listen to a recorded update. You must call during business hours between 8:30 am–5:00 pm. Thank you.

In summary

• Amendments (or changes) to the legislation about how the settlement fund is run have passed.
• These changes could harm the process for those who have not settled with the fund yet.
• In response, we have asked the court to STOP the state’s ability to make or utilize these changes.
• We have done this by filing a class action lawsuit.
• If you have filed in the settlement fund and have NOT received a settlement, you ARE included in this lawsuit.
• If you HAVE settled with the state, these changes will NOT impact your payment or future payments.
• There is nothing for you to do at this time. Please stay tuned for updates.

[Return to home screen]