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MONTREAL - A Quebec Superior Court judge said Thursday that his decision to grant creditor protection to the insolvent railway company at the centre of the deadly derailment disaster in Lac-Megantic, Que., is the best way for victims to be compensated.

However, after secured creditors are paid their due, there might be little money left for the families of the 47 people killed in the July 6 train crash and for the community whose downtown core was left devastated by fire.

Timothy Dunn, bankruptcy lawyer and partner at Toronto's Minden Gross law firm, told QMI Agency that he expects Quebec citizens will be stuck paying a significant amount of the costs of clearing millions of litres of spilled oil from Lac-Megantic's downtown.

The company estimated cleanup costs at roughly $200 million.

"As it stands the taxpayers will likely be on the hook," he said.

The train that derailed and crashed into Lac-Megantic is owned by the U.S.-based Montreal Maine and Atlantic Railway Ltd. as well as the Canadian subsidiary, Montreal Maine and Atlantic Canada Corp.

It is still unclear how many creditors are demanding money from the railway company and just how much it owes.

Court documents state that the Canadian branch is worth just under $18 million, while its U.S. counterpart has between $50 and $100 million in assets. The Canadian branch also has an insurance limit of $25 million.

Dunn explained that creditors will likely be unable to demand money from the railway's parent company, Earlston Associates L.P., because it is technically a separate legal entity.