BELOIT, Wis. -- A judge is expected to rule this summer in a long-running dispute over severance pay for former employees of Beloit Corp.

A federal judge in Delaware heard three days of testimony this week.

Corey Finkelmeyer, director of civil litigation for the state Department of Justice, said a decision is expected by July or August. Judge Leonard Stark, however, said he would expedite the process.

The dispute stems from 1999, when Beloit Corp.'s parent company filed for bankruptcy. The state contends the parent company, which now operates as Milwaukee-based Joy Global, unlawfully reduced severance benefits for hundreds of Beloit employees.

Beloit Corp. is the world's leading manufacturer of papermaking machinery.