A new paper by Fordham law professor Howard Erichson, entitled “The Problem with Settlement Class Actions”—and a blog post about it by Andrew Trask—caught my eye. The paper uses two recent class settlements, In re AIG and Sullivan v. DB Investments, Inc., as the springboard to discuss settlement class actions. Erichson argues that the problem… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: attorneys’ fees
Third Circuit Rejects Class Settlement Because Class Fund Went to Class Counsel and Cy Pres Rather than Class Members
Posted in Class Action SettlementsWe’ve blogged before about federal courts’ increasing reluctance to approve class settlements that involve a significant cy pres component. The Third Circuit’s recent decision in In re Baby Products Litigation (pdf) is the latest example of this trend. Class counsel often use the distribution of funds to handpicked charities in order to disguise the percentage of… Continue Reading
What Are Courts Doing With Fee Requests Made in Connection with Class Settlements?
Posted in Class Action Settlements, Class Action TrendsIn recent years, courts generally have cast a more skeptical eye on fee requests made by plaintiffs’ counsel who have negotiated a class action settlement. In the past, courts often rubberstamped outlandish fee requests. In fact, settlements awarding class counsel “excessive attorneys’ fees with little or no recovery for the class members themselves” were the… Continue Reading