PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT. A. . The Settlement requires Viridian to pay (i) Administration and notice expenses,
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT. On a preliminary basis, taking into account (1) the value and certainty of the benefits to be provided by the Settlement Agreement to Class Members; (2) the defenses asserted by Defendant; (3) the risks to Plaintiffs and Class Members that Defendant would successfully defend against class certification and/or against the merits of the claims alleged in this Action; and
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT. A. The Settlement requires Defendants to make a payment of Three Million Two Hundred Thirty-Seven Thousand Five Hundred Dollars ($3,237,500.00) as set forth in the Settlement Agreement.
B. The Settlement is the product of non-collusive arm’s-length negotiations between experienced counsel who were well informed of the strengths and weaknesses of the Litigation, including through significant discovery and motion practice, and whose settlement negotiations included mediation supervised by neutral mediator Xxxxxx Xxx.
C. The Settlement confers substantial benefits upon the Settlement Class and avoids the costs, uncertainty, delays, and other risks associated with continued litigation, trial, and/or appeal in this Litigation. The Court preliminarily finds that the consideration provided to the Settlement Class under the Settlement Agreement falls within the range of reasonable recovery when balanced against the risks and delay of continuing the Litigation, and does not grant preferential treatment to Plaintiff, Class Counsel, or any subgroup of the Settlement Class. The plan of allocation is fair and reasonable, and consequently, the Settlement is likely to gain final approval under Fed. R. Civ. P. 23(e)(2).
D. The Court thus preliminarily approves the Settlement, as memorialized in the Settlement Agreement, as fair, reasonable, and adequate, and in the best interest of Plaintiff and the Settlement Class, subject to further consideration at the Final Approval Hearing to be conducted as described below.
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT. A. On a preliminary basis, taking into account (1) the value and certainty of the benefits to be provided by the Settlement to Settlement Class Members who submit valid and timely Claim Forms; (2) the defenses asserted by Generac; (3) the risks to Plaintiffs and Settlement Class Members that Generac would successfully defend against class certification and/or against the merits of the claims alleged in this Lawsuit, whether litigated by Settlement Class Members themselves or on their behalf in a class action; and (4) the length of time that would be required for Settlement Class Members or any of them to obtain a final judgment through one or more trials and appeals, the Settlement appears sufficiently fair, reasonable, and adequate to authorize dissemination of notice to the Settlement Class as set forth in the Settlement Agreement.
B. Moreover, the Court finds that the Settlement falls within the range of reasonableness because the Settlement has key indicia of fairness, in that (1) the Parties reached the Settlement only after extensive negotiations, which were contentious, at arm’s-length, and facilitated by an experienced mediator (Xxx. Xxxxx X. Welsh (Xxx.) of JAMS), (2) the Plaintiffs obtained confirmatory discovery, and (3) the proponents of the Settlement are experienced in similar class action litigation.
C. Accordingly, the Settlement is hereby preliminarily approved.
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT. 18 A. Defendant has at all times disputed, and continues to dispute, Plaintiff’s allegations in 19 the Lawsuit, denies all liability for any of the claims that have, or could have, been alleged by 20 Plaintiff or other members of the Settlement Class, and maintains that the Class Refrigerators are 21 free of defects.
22 B. The Settlement requires that Defendant provide specified compensation to each Class 23 Member who meets certain eligibility requirements and who timely submits a valid, complete Claim 24 Form, with specified supporting documentation, all as defined and set forth in the Settlement 25 Agreement. All Class Members who within five years of acquiring their Class Refrigerator (a) 26 experienced a buildup of ice due to blockage of their freezer drain tube, which may have resulted in 27 water leaking from the freezer door (a “Freezing Event”), (b) experienced a repair of that problem 28 consisting of the unclogging or replacement of the freezer drain tube, and (c) paid money out of 1 pocket for that repair, are eligible to receive a cash reimbursement payment, up to $150, for the 2 amount of out-of-pocket qualifying repair expenses established through documentary proof as
(1) one hundred percent of parts and labor in years one through three of ownership; (2) one 4 hundred percent of parts and sixty-five percent of labor in year four of ownership; and (3) one 5 hundred percent of parts and fifty-percent of labor in year five of ownership. Further, members of 6 the Settlement Class who experience a Freezing Event after the Settlement Notice Date and within 7 five years of ownership are eligible for repair service subject to the above-described limitations 8 applicable to out-of-pocket expense reimbursement claims. Finally, Whirlpool agrees to keep in 9 place and not alter its special service project concerning Freezing Events, which provides a free 10 replacement drain tube to persons who experience a Freezing Event as reported to Whirlpool by a 11 Service Technician through December 31, 2021, for Class Refrigerator models in Exhibit 2, Group 12 A or through December 31, 2026, for Class Refrigerator models in Group B.
13 C. On a preliminary basis, the Settlement appears fair, reasonable, and adequate, 14 considering the following: (1) the defenses on the merits and a contested class certification asserted 15 by Defendant, (2) the risks to the members of the Settlement Class that Defendant could successfully 16 defend against claims arising out of ...
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT. A. The Settlement requires NIBCO to make payments up to the aggregate amount of Seven Million Six Hundred Fifty Thousand Dollars ($7,650,000.00) (the “Class Settlement Fund”) into an interest-bearing account (“the Settlement Escrow Account”).
B. On a preliminary basis, the Settlement appears sufficiently fair, reasonable, and adequate to authorize dissemination of notice to the Settlement Class as set forth in the Settlement Agreement, taking into account the factors required by the Xxxx test of the 5th Circuit and Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(e)(2), which are including but not limited to: (1) the value and certainty of the benefits to be provided by the Settlement to Settlement Class Members who submit valid and timely Claim Forms; (2) the defenses asserted by NIBCO; (3) the risks to Plaintiffs and Settlement Class Members that NIBCO would successfully defend against class certification and/or against the merits of the claims alleged in this Litigation, whether litigated by Settlement Class Members themselves or on their behalf in a class action; (4) the length of time that would be required for Settlement Class Members or any of them to obtain a final judgment through one or more trials and appeals, and (5) the equality of treatment of Settlement Class Members relative to one another.
C. Moreover, the Court finds on a preliminary basis that the Settlement falls within the range of reasonableness because the Settlement has key indicia of fairness, in that (1) the Parties have reached the Settlement investigating the strengths and weaknesses of the claims, (2) the extensive negotiations were contentious, arm’s-length, and facilitated by professional mediator Xxxx Xxxx, Esq., (3) there is no evidence of collusion in reaching this Settlement; and (4) the proponents of the Settlement are experienced in similar litigation.
D. Accordingly, the Settlement is hereby preliminarily approved.
