In re Baby Prods. Litig.

We’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 the class recovery that’s actually going right into class counsel’s pocket. That may have been what was going on in In re Baby Products Litigation. In that case, class counsel got almost five times as much money ($14 million in fees and expenses)
Continue Reading Third Circuit Rejects Class Settlement Because Class Fund Went to Class Counsel and Cy Pres Rather than Class Members