Salinas v. Block, Inc.

Background

Plaintiffs asked the court to give final approval to a class-action settlement and to award attorney’s fees, litigation costs, and incentive payments. The court had previously granted preliminary approval and conditionally certified the settlement class. It again found that the requirements for certifying the settlement class were satisfied and that notice was adequate and reasonably designed to reach class members.

There were 667,985 nonduplicate claims from 158,011,266 potential class members. Several motions to intervene had been resolved, and one apparent objection to the settlement was filed. The court found that objection without merit. Only 191 potential class members sought exclusion from the settlement.

Settlement Approval

The court found that the settlement was fair and reasonable and treated class members equitably relative to one another. It granted the settlement-approval motion in part. The order includes payment of $1,515,687 to the claims administrator, Angeion Group, LLC. The people and entities who timely and validly opted out, listed in Exhibit 1, are not bound by the settlement or the final approval order and judgment and are not entitled to settlement benefits.

Attorney’s Fees

Plaintiffs requested attorney’s fees equal to 25 percent of the $20 million settlement, or $5 million. Although the court found that plaintiffs’ estimated lodestar—a calculation based on reasonable hours multiplied by reasonable hourly rates—was inflated because it assumed future fees, the court concluded that the requested fees were reasonable in light of the results obtained and the 25-percent benchmark. The court granted the motion for attorney’s fees and awarded $5 million.

The court held back $500,000, or 10 percent of the fee award, pending a further order after counsel files the required post-distribution accounting. That accounting must address how much of the settlement remained after deducting the administrator’s expenses, attorney’s fees and costs, and incentive payments; whether the remaining amount was paid to class members with valid claims; whether class members received a proportional increase or decrease from their submitted claims; and whether the administrator’s expenses were less than the estimated final cost of $1,515,687.

Litigation Costs

Plaintiffs separately sought reimbursement of $76,696.58 in litigation costs. The court denied that request because plaintiffs had previously represented that their request for 25 percent of the benefit conferred would include both attorney’s fees and costs, and the court had relied on that representation in granting preliminary approval. The order states that this denial is without prejudice to plaintiffs making a further showing that class counsel should be reimbursed for expenses in addition to the $5 million. Any such further showing was due by April 11, 2025.

Incentive Payments and Disposition

Plaintiffs requested $2,500 for each of the three named plaintiffs: Michelle Salinas, Raymel Washington, and Amanda Gordon. The court found those amounts reasonable and granted the request.

Judge Sallie Kim granted in part and denied in part the motions for final approval of the class-action settlement and for attorney’s fees, costs, and incentive payments. The court awarded $5 million in attorney’s fees, $1,515,687 to Angeion, and $2,500 to each named plaintiff. It denied the request for $76,696.58 in litigation costs, while allowing a further showing on those costs, and ordered that $500,000 of the fee award remain held back pending further order.