Settlement in suit over 'Back to the Future' car hits bump

NEWARK, N.J. (AP) — A settlement in a lawsuit over the car used in the 1985 film "Back to the Future" has hit a roadblock.

Last year, the widow of automaker John DeLorean sued a Texas company she said has been illegally using the DeLorean name for years. The DMC-12, known simply as "the DeLorean," was driven by Michael J. Fox in the movie and has since gained a cult following.

The two sides in the lawsuit reached a preliminary settlement in June that would pay an undisclosed amount of money to Sally DeLorean, who lives in New Jersey with her daughter.

But her attorney wrote to the judge this week that company lawyers were trying to change the settlement at the last minute.

The company is seeking to have DeLorean's estate say on the record that its case had no merit and also "consent to the use by the Defendant of the name DeLorean for virtually any purpose," attorney R. Scott Thompson wrote.