Mateer v. Peloton Interactive, Inc.
- Lorna Schofield
- 1:22-cv-00740
- U.S. District Court · Southern District of New York
- 4
In Mateer v. Peloton, Judge Schofield awarded class counsel $833,250 in fees and $79,156.53 in expenses from the settlement fund.
Class counsel and the class members whose settlement fund will pay the fees and expenses; the lead plaintiffs’ service awards were reserved for a separate order.
What happened
In Mateer v. Peloton Interactive, Inc., the plaintiffs sought attorneys’ fees and expense reimbursement after the court approved a class and collective settlement. The settlement fund totaled $2.5 million.
The court awarded class counsel $833,250 in fees, about 33% of the settlement fund, and found the amount fair and reasonable. It also awarded $79,156.53 in expenses, reducing the requested amount by $2,500 because the final approval hearing was held by telephone.
Judge Lorna G. Schofield ordered that the fees be paid from the settlement fund after class members receive their cash awards and that the expenses could be paid immediately. The order says lead plaintiffs’ service awards would be addressed separately.
The detailed version
- Mateer v. Peloton Interactive, Inc. · No. 1:22-cv-00740
- Lorna Schofield
- Feb. 9, 2024
Background
The court considered the plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of expenses in connection with a class and collective settlement. A January 29, 2024, order had granted the plaintiffs’ unopposed motion for final approval of the settlement. The gross settlement fund was $2,500,000.
Attorneys’ Fees
Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(h), the court granted the motion for $833,250 in attorneys’ fees. The court found that amount fair and reasonable under the factors identified in Goldberger v. Integrated Resources, Inc., including the time and labor spent, the litigation’s complexity, the risks, the quality of representation, the fee’s relationship to the settlement, and public-policy considerations.
The court used fee awards in similar Fair Labor Standards Act cases and common-fund settlements as a benchmark. It noted that the requested fee was approximately 33% of the settlement fund, matching the median percentage for fees in Fair Labor Standards Act class actions cited in the order. The court also used the lodestar method as a cross-check. Counsel’s documented time and rates produced a lodestar of $1,428,766.50, making the requested fee approximately 0.58 times that amount. The court found that the risks, including a significant standing issue related to Wage Theft Prevention Act claims and possible Fair Labor Standards Act exemptions, did not justify increasing or decreasing the benchmark.
Expenses and Payment
The court ordered reimbursement of $79,156.53 in expenses, finding that amount reasonably incurred in litigating and resolving the lawsuit. The award reflected the requested $81,656.53 minus $2,500 in estimated costs for attending the final approval hearing in person, which was held by telephone.
The attorneys’ fees must be paid from the settlement fund after class members have received their cash awards. The expense reimbursement must also be paid from the settlement fund but could be paid immediately. The court stated that service awards for the lead plaintiffs would be addressed in a separate order.
Disposition
Judge Lorna G. Schofield awarded class counsel $833,250 in attorneys’ fees and ordered reimbursement of $79,156.53 in expenses. The order did not address the lead plaintiffs’ service awards.
Read the full 4-page opinion on CourtListener, the free public archive maintained by the Free Law Project.