Swetz v. GSK Consumer Health, Inc.
- Nelson Roman
- 7:20-cv-04731
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Swetz v. GSK Consumer Health, Inc., Judge Roman granted fees, costs, and service awards from a class-action settlement fund.
Class counsel received $2,166,666 in attorneys’ fees and $22,903.98 in costs; each of the two settlement-class representatives received a $3,000 service award. The settlement class was affected through the distribution of the settlement fund and the cessation of the specified marketing statements.
What happened
Swetz v. GSK Consumer Health, Inc. involved a request by the plaintiffs’ lawyers and class representatives for payment under a settlement. The settlement created a $6.5 million cash fund and addressed GSK’s future use of certain marketing statements.
The court awarded class counsel $2,166,666 in attorneys’ fees and reimbursed $22,903.98 in litigation costs. It also approved $3,000 service awards for each of the two settlement-class representatives. The order said these amounts would be paid according to the settlement agreement.
Judge Nelson S. Roman found the fees and costs fair, reasonable, and appropriate, and granted the plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees, litigation costs, and service awards.
The detailed version
- Swetz v. GSK Consumer Health, Inc. · No. 7:20-cv-04731
- Nelson Roman
- Nov. 22, 2021
Background
Susan Swetz brought the case individually and on behalf of others similarly situated. The opinion refers to a settlement agreement that created a $6,500,000 cash fund for the settlement class. The settlement concerned GSK’s future marketing of covered products, including statements describing them as “100% Natural” and “clinically proven to cure cravings.”
The plaintiffs filed a motion for attorneys’ fees, litigation costs, and service awards. The court considered the settlement agreement, the motion and supporting materials, the absence of opposition or objections, and arguments presented at a hearing.
Court’s Ruling
The court granted the plaintiffs’ motion. It found that notice of the fee request was provided to potential class members in a reasonable manner and complied with Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23 and due-process requirements. No settlement-class member objected to the fee request or the related settlement provision.
The court awarded $2,166,666 in attorneys’ fees to class counsel. That amount was one-third of the settlement fund. The court noted that class counsel had devoted approximately 2,086.06 hours to the litigation and had a lodestar—the hours worked multiplied by applicable hourly rates—of $1,573,594.50. The award represented an approximate 1.37 multiplier of that lodestar. Applying the factors identified in Goldberger v. Integrated Resources, Inc., the court found the requested fee fair, reasonable, and appropriate.
The court also found that class counsel had reasonably incurred $22,903.98 in litigation costs and ordered reimbursement from the settlement fund. It approved an incentive, or service, award of $3,000 for each of the two settlement-class representatives, based on the risks they faced, the time and effort they spent, and the benefits they helped obtain for the settlement class.
The order directed that the fees, costs, and service awards be paid and distributed according to the settlement agreement. Judge Nelson S. Roman entered the order on November 22, 2021.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.