CCAF filed an objection on July 11, 2019 arguing that because this is a megafund settlement, any fee award should be significantly less than the 25% benchmark. Plaintiffs' counsel also drastically overstate their lodestar with millions of dollars of work by contract attorneys billed at excessive rates.
On June 25, 2018, Judge Rakoff of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York largely agreed with the objector concerning contract attorney billing, which results in nearly $100 million additional dollars going to class members. In spite of the successful objection, CCAF was only awarded $11,000 in attorneys fees.
CCAF asked the court to investigate overbilling that was not disclosed to the court or the class. Judge Koh agreed and appointed a special master to investigate overbilling, subsequently reducing the final fee award by $6.9 million.
