The long running court case involving Bell Group and its banks ended yesterday in a settlement for an undisclosed sum.The parties announced the matter had been settled after almost 20 years, but without giving details. The Australian, however, estimated that this figure could "potentially" run as high as A$2.8bn."Settling now is a pragmatic decision which will save further time and costs for all the parties involved," the banks' spokesman, John Vaughan, of Herbert Smith Freehills, said.Tony Woodings, liquidator of the Bell Group, said the settlement was in the best interests of the Bell companies and their creditors.Woodings' comment suggests the banks have coughed up a reasonable proportion of the money the courts said they owed. The banks had made a part payment in 2012.In August last year, the Court of Appeal in Western Australia ruled that the banks owe even more than the A$1.5 billion slapped on them in a May 2009 lower court ruling.Woodings estimated then that the effect of the court's ruling would help lift the amount payable to $2 billion, or even $3 billion.       Banks will also have to pay in the order of $250 million in legal costs that were incurred by the Western Australian government over 18 years, as well as most of the bills of the convertible bond-holders who joined the action.As recently as August, Commonwealth Bank raised what it described as "an additional provision" (also described as "Bell Group litigation expenses") for its share of the damages the Appeal Court ordered the banks to pay to Bell's liquidators.In April 2009, National Australia Bank took a provision of $65 million "with respect to long-standing legal proceedings where settlements are imminent."The Bell liquidators, Tony Woodings and Geoff Totterdell, and the trustee for a group of bond-holders, alleged malfeasance on the part of Bell's bankers, who refinanced the company in January 1990 when they knew it was broke; wrongly claimed control of the proceeds of certain Bell asset sales during 1990 and 1991; and sold Bell's assets for arguably less than they were worth in 1992 to recover their debts.At the time of the January 1990 refinancing, Bell owed the banks $278 million.