P
laintiff's attorneys have filed a request to be paid one-third of the funds from two major settlements in commission cases involving the National Association of Realtors (NAR) and HomeServices Of America. The total settlement amount is approximately $680 million, and the attorneys are seeking more than $225 million as their fee. In addition to this, they have requested an additional $16 million to cover their current expenses incurred during the case. The settlement breakdown includes $418 million from NAR, $250 million from HomeServices, and about $11.3 million from MLSs and brokerages that opted into the settlement. The opt-in amount is expected to increase as more settlements are finalized. The total settlement fund is now approximately $998.38 million, which could potentially put attorney fees at nearly $333 million using the one-third formula. The settlement hearing for NAR and HomeServices is scheduled for Nov. 26. The attorneys have argued that one-third of the settlement fund is a typical amount for fees in class-action suits, particularly in cases with a high degree of difficulty and no guarantee of success. They have claimed to have invested more than 107,500 hours of work through August. A legal expert named Robert Klonoff has also supported their request, stating that the legal team engaged in extensive fact and expert discovery in both the Sitzer/Burnett and Moehrl cases over a five-year period. Klonoff believes that a one-third fee award is reasonable for all pending settlements based on the extraordinary results achieved by class counsel. The exact amount home sellers will receive is still uncertain, but it could be in the tens or hundreds of dollars. The return rate for claim notices is typically less than 10% of eligible class members, and often this figure is less than 1%.
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