HONOLULU >> The parties involved in Lahaina wildfire lawsuits against the state of Hawaii, Maui County and utilities are close to a global settlement of claims that will be worth a little over $4 billion, Gov. Josh Green told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Green said he’s hoping to finalize the details in coming days, perhaps as soon as Aug. 6, which would be two days before the one-year anniversary of the fire that killed 102 people and wiped out historic Lahaina.

“If that could happen, it would be great. I humbly invite all the parties to finalize the agreement,” Green said in an interview at his office. “It appears that we are almost there, and we only have a very tiny holdout remaining.”

He said all the plaintiffs and defendants have agreed to the global settlement number but final details are pending.

More than 600 lawsuits have been filed over the deaths and destruction caused by the fires. In the spring, a judge appointed mediators and ordered all parties to participate in settlement talks.

“Then on July 18, 2024, the Court, along with undoubtedly many others, learned for the first time details of what media reports purported to be a ‘global settlement,’” Judge Peter Cahill, who is overseeing the coordination of the lawsuits, wrote in a scheduling order last week. “These reports proved to be premature.”

Cahill noted that he hadn’t received any notice for any party “of any settlement let alone one of a global nature.” However, he also hadn’t been informed of any impasse in the negotiation process, he wrote.

Jake Lowenthal, a Maui attorney selected as one of five liaisons for the coordination of the cases, said Wednesday, “as of now, there’s no settlement.”

Hawaiian Electric Company spokesperson Darren Pai said in an email that the mediation process is confidential and the company would not comment. Maui County didn’t respond to an email seeking comment.

Jim Bickerton, a lawyer who filed the first lawsuit against Bishop Estate — one of the landowners sued over allegations of failing to maintain vegetation that fueled the fire — wouldn’t comment on the status of current negotiations. But he said, “Any settlement process would include a method for those who have not yet hired lawyers or made claims to have their claim be considered.”