The maker of the rifle used in the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting has offered some of the victims' families nearly $US33 million ($44 million) to settle their lawsuit over how the company marketed the firearm to the public.

Lawyers for now-bankrupt Remington filed offers to the nine families which were suing the company.

The offers amount to almost $US3.7 million each and the families are considering the proposals, lawyers said...

The settlement offers were filed a day after a judge denied Remington's request to dismiss the lawsuit.

A Bushmaster AR-15-style rifle made by Remington was used to kill 20 first grade students and six teachers at the Newtown, Connecticut, school on December 14, 2012...

Relatives of nine victims killed in the shooting argued Remington should have never sold such a dangerous weapon to the public.

They alleged the gun maker targeted younger, at-risk males in marketing and via product placement in violent video games.

The families said their focus was on preventing future mass shootings...

Joshua Koskoff, a lawyer for the families, said the settlements were offered by two of Remington's insurers.

"Ironshore and James River … deserve credit for now realising that promoting the use of AR-15s as weapons of war to civilians is indefensible. Insuring this kind of conduct is an unprofitable and untenable business model," Mr Koskoff said.

Remington's lawyers denied the lawsuit's allegations.

In their request to dismiss the lawsuit, they argued there were no facts presented to establish that Remington's marketing had anything to do with the shooting.