Judge: Peter Wilson, Case: 2020-01140084, Date: 2023-08-31 Tentative Ruling

Having considered the papers, including all supplemental papers, filed in support of the Motion for Preliminary Approval of $816,851.00 Class Action Settlement, the Court will GRANT the Motion subject to the following:

$ 5,000.00 for Plaintiff’s enhancement (not to exceed);

$ 272,256.44 for attorney’s fees (not to exceed 33.33% of the gross settlement amount); 

$ 15,000.00 for litigation costs (not to exceed); and

$ 10,000.00 for settlement administrator’s fees and costs (not to exceed).

At Final Approval, the parties are ordered to include the following:

1.    Plaintiff must present a full report to the Court on all exclusions, objections and disputes received. The Court will consider any objections at the final approval hearing.   

2.    The Court has wide discretion on assessing the reasonableness of fees, including basing fees on the percentage of fund method, conducting a lodestar cross-check on a percentage fee, or foregoing a lodestar cross-check and using other means to evaluate the reasonableness of a requested percentage fee. (Laffitte v. Robert Half Intern. Inc. (2016) 1 Cal.5th 480, 506.) However, the parties must include sufficient information in the Motion for Final Approval to permit the Court to conduct a lodestar cross-check, such as billing records in support of fees and documentation of costs. 

3.    Plaintiff’s counsel must disclose whether they have any fee-splitting arrangement with any other counsel, including the exact percentages, or confirm none exist.  (Barnes, Crosby, Fitzgerald & Zeman, LLP v. Ringler (2012) 212 Cal.App.4th 172, 184; Cal. R. Ct. 3.769(b).) 

4.    In order for the Court to determine the appropriate amount of Plaintiff’s enhancement at final approval, Plaintiff should submit a declaration addressing the factors set forth in Golba v. Dick’s Sporting Goods, Inc. (2015) 238 Cal.App.4th 1251, 1272 and Clark v. Am. Residential Servs. LLC (2009) 175 Cal.App.4th 785, 804, including an estimate of the hours spent on this litigation. 

5.    Along with the Motion for Final Approval, the Settlement Administrator should provide an estimated high and low for individual settlement payments, along with Plaintiff’s individual payouts.

Plaintiff is ordered to give notice.