Bowlay-Williams v. Google, LLC

Background

Cody Bowlay-Williams brought this case individually and on behalf of similarly situated people against Google LLC. The proposed settlement concerned wage claims involving restricted stock units that vested and sign-on bonuses, including whether those amounts should have been included in the regular rate used to calculate overtime.

The court had preliminarily approved a maximum settlement amount of $8,369,000. The parties then provided notice to potential class and collective-action members, who could participate, object, or exclude themselves. Google did not oppose the motions for final approval or for attorneys’ fees, costs, and a service payment.

Settlement Classes and Notice

The court certified two groups solely for purposes of settlement:

- The California Class consisted of non-exempt Google employees who worked in California between December 22, 2017, and June 5, 2022, and who received qualifying restricted stock units or a sign-on bonus. - The Fair Labor Standards Act collective consisted of non-exempt Google employees who worked outside California in the United States between December 22, 2018, and June 5, 2022, and who received qualifying restricted stock units or a sign-on bonus.

There were 6,517 eligible individuals: 3,277 in the California Class and 3,240 in the FLSA collective. Eighteen California class members requested exclusion. Of the 3,240 putative FLSA collective members, 662 submitted valid consent forms and participated. In total, 3,921 people were participating settling plaintiffs. No class member objected or stated an intent to appear at the final approval hearing.

The court found that the notice to class members, the notice required by the Class Action Fairness Act, and the notice to the California Labor and Workforce Development Agency under California’s Private Attorneys General Act were timely and adequate. The court concluded that the notice satisfied legal and due-process requirements.

Rulings

The court granted final approval of the settlement and found its terms fair, reasonable, and adequate, as well as a reasonable compromise of a genuine dispute. The court ordered the settlement’s terms to be carried out and designated Bowlay-Williams as class representative and the identified attorneys as class counsel.

The court approved the requested costs and service payment, with a modification based on lower costs for the remote hearing. Of the requested $16,700 in costs, $16,488.22 was awarded to class counsel and $211.78 was donated to Legal Aid at Work. The court approved a $3,000 service payment to Bowlay-Williams.

The court did not award fees based on the maximum hypothetical settlement amount. Instead, it calculated the fee using Google’s actual payment to resolve the action, excluding amounts retained for people who did not participate. The actual payment was $7,311,680.03, and 25 percent of that amount—$1,827,920.01—was awarded as attorneys’ fees. The court found that percentage justified by the results achieved, the benefit to the class, counsel’s work and skill, and the risk involved in pursuing the claims. The court noted that the award was approximately 5.5 times counsel’s lodestar, meaning the amount calculated from counsel’s hours and standard hourly rates.

The court ordered Google to transfer the settlement funds to the administrator within 60 days. It also set procedures for payment, voided checks, redistribution of certain uncashed California checks, and donation of specified remaining funds to Legal Aid at Work. The court retained jurisdiction over matters involving interpretation, administration, implementation, effectuation, and enforcement of the order and settlement.

Released Claims and Final Judgment

The order states that the 3,259 participating California class members release specified federal, state, municipal, and local wage claims concerning overtime calculations, related wage statements and payment claims, penalties, fees, and costs. All California class members, including those who opted out, release specified claims for civil penalties under California’s Private Attorneys General Act relating to the released claims. The 662 participating FLSA collective members release specified overtime and related claims concerning sign-on bonuses and restricted stock units.

The court ordered the parties to comply with the settlement and entered final judgment as modified by the court. Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton signed the order on August 8, 2023.