The breadth of the settlement will help PG&E move on from its biggest legal challenges. The accord not only settles claims arising from the wildfires of 2018 and 2017 but also encompasses those from the Butte Fire in 2015 and the Ghost Ship fire in 2016 in Oakland. PG&E was one of several organizations sued by the families of victims of the Ghost Ship fire, which killed 36 people during a party in a warehouse with a long record of safety violations.

PG&E said the deal would also settle claims from the 2017 Tubbs Fire, a giant fire in Northern California. The California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection had cleared PG&E of responsibility for that blaze, but a California Superior Court judge scheduled a January trial to determine whether PG&E’s equipment caused it. The settlement could eliminate the need for that trial.

Along with the destruction from wildfires caused by PG&E’s equipment, the utility has faced growing criticism over its failure to inspect and maintain its transmission network. Many Californians have also expressed anger at how the company shut off power to millions of people during periods of high winds and dry conditions to prevent fires.

A report released last week by the California Public Utilities Commission identified a 100-year-old transmission tower as the cause of the Camp Fire. It also revealed significant shortcomings in PG&E’s inspections of its power lines, a major cause of wildfires in the state.

In recent bankruptcy negotiations, representatives of Mr. Newsom have pressed PG&E to compensate wildfire victims sufficiently, treat workers fairly and maintain its commitment to clean energy. He has said the utility that emerges from bankruptcy must make safety a priority.

In a statement, lawyers for the victims said a trust would be set up to pay the victims’ claims, funded with a mix of “cash, equity and other consideration.” The equity is expected to be stock in the PG&E that emerges from bankruptcy. But the stock could lose some of its value if PG&E faces new financial challenges, including from wildfires or other disasters caused by its equipment, potentially shortchanging victims.

PG&E has already agreed to pay holders of insurance claims $11 billion in cash.

PG&E’s stock surged this week as investors became more upbeat about the prospects of a deal with the wildfire victims, but closed down 1.3 percent on Friday.