1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

JUAN QUINTANILLA VASQUEZ, et 

al., 

Plaintiffs, 

v. 

LIBRE BY NEXUS, INC., 

Defendant. 

Case No. 17-cv-00755 CW 

 

[PROPOSED] ORDER GRANTING 

MOTION FOR FINAL APPROVAL OF 

SETTLEMENT AND GRANTING 

MOTION FOR ATTORNEY FEES, 

COSTS, AND SERVICE AWARDS 

Re: Dkt. No. 152, 147 

On December 9, 2020, and February 3, 2021, this Court heard 

the motion for final approval of a class action settlement 

brought by Plaintiffs Juan Quintanilla Vasquez, Gabriela Perdomo 

Ortiz, Victor Hugo Catalan Molina, and Kevin Calderon 

(Plaintiffs). The Court has reviewed (1) the motion and the 

supporting papers, including the operative Settlement Agreement 

and Release (Agreement or Settlement), Jason Rathod Decl., Ex. 1, 

Docket No. 143-1; (2) any objections filed with or presented to 

the Court; (3) Plaintiffs’ and Defendant Libre by Nexus, Inc.’s 

(LBN) (collectively, the Parties) responses to any objections; 

(4) counsel’s arguments; and (5) the parties’ filings after the 

December 9, 2020, hearing. Based on this review and the findings 

below, the Court GRANTS the motion for final approval of the 

Settlement, as well as Plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees, 

costs, and service awards. 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 1 of 13
2 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

FINDINGS 

1. Unless otherwise specified, defined terms in the 

Agreement have the same definition as used in this Final Approval 

Order and Judgment. 

2. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of 

the Agreement with respect to and over all parties to the 

Agreement, including Plaintiffs and all Settlement Class Members. 

3. Venue is proper in this judicial district. 

4. The Court finds that the parties entered into the 

Settlement in good faith; that the Settlement is fair, 

reasonable, and adequate; and that the Settlement satisfies the 

standards and applicable requirements for final approval under 

Federal Rules of Civil Procedure 23(a) and 23(b)(3). 

5. The Parties adequately performed their obligations to 

date under the Agreement. 

6. Defendant LBN and the Settlement Administrator provided 

notice to the Settlement Class Members in compliance with the 

Agreement, Rule 23, the California and United States 

Constitutions, and other applicable law. The notice: (a) fully 

and accurately informed Class Members about the lawsuit and 

Settlement; (b) provided sufficient information so that the 

Settlement Class Members were able to decide whether to accept 

the benefits offered, opt out and pursue their own remedies, or 

object to the Settlement; (c) provided procedures for Class 

Members to file written objections to the Settlement, appear at 

the final fairness hearing, and state objections to the 

Settlement; and (d) provided the time, date, and place of the 

final fairness hearing. The Court has afforded a full 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 2 of 13
3 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

opportunity to all Settlement Class Members to be heard. 

Accordingly, the Court determines that all Settlement Class 

Members, except those who timely excluded themselves from the 

Settlement Class, are bound by this Final Approval Order and 

Judgment. 

7. Within ten (10) days after the filing of the Agreement in 

this Court, LBN served a notice of the proposed settlement upon 

the appropriate state official of each State in which a Class 

member resides and upon the Attorney General of the United 

States. The Court finds that the notice provided by LBN 

satisfies the requirements of 28 U.S.C. § 1715(b) and that more 

than ninety (90) days have elapsed since LBN provided the 

required notice, as required by 28 U.S.C. § 1715(d). 

8. An award of $800,000 in attorneys’ fees and costs is fair 

and reasonable in light of the nature of this case, Class 

Counsel’s experience and efforts in prosecuting this Action, and 

the benefits obtained for the Class. This amount represents 

twenty-five percent of the settlement fund and is in line with 

the twenty-five-percent benchmark that the Ninth Circuit deems to 

be presumptively reasonable. When cross-checked against the 

lodestar, which is $1,838,964.81, the award represents a 

multiplier of .44, which further supports the Court’s finding 

that the award is fair and reasonable. 

9. An incentive award to Plaintiffs in the amount of $10,000 

for each named Plaintiff, for a total of $40,000, is fair and 

reasonable in light of the risks that Plaintiffs undertook 

(including financial, professional, and emotional) in commencing 

this Action as the Class Representatives; the time and effort 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 3 of 13
4 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

spent by Plaintiffs in litigating this Action as the Class 

Representatives; Plaintiffs’ full release and waiver of all known 

and unknown claims; and Plaintiffs’ public interest and service. 

IT IS HEREBY ORDERED THAT: 

1. Class Members. For Settlement purposes only, the Court 

makes final its preliminary certification of the following 

Settlement Class: 

All current or former LBN “program 

participants” and “sponsors” who paid, or 

caused to be paid on their behalf, a fee to 

LBN. Excluded from the Class are: (a) 

individuals for whom LBN or any surety or 

bond company has paid a treasury invoice or 

the bond or for whom a demand for payment 

for breach of a bond has been made by the 

U.S. Government which remains outstanding or 

open; (b) any judge or magistrate presiding 

over this action and members of their 

families; (c) Defendant and its current or 

former employees; and (d) all persons who 

properly execute and file a timely request 

for exclusion. 

The Class is also comprised of three Subclasses, defined as 

follows: 

Current Program Participant Subclass: 

All current LBN “program participants” and 

“sponsors” who paid, or caused to be paid, 

or caused to be paid on their behalf, a fee 

to LBN. 

Former and Current Program Participant 

Payments Subclass: 

All former LBN “program participants” who 

paid, or caused to be paid on their behalf, 

a “Program Payment” to LBN and all current 

LBN “program participants” who, within six 

months of the “Final Settlement Approval 

Date” have been issued a Form I-391. 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 4 of 13
5 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

Sponsor Payments Subclass: 

All sponsors of members of the Former and 

Current Program Participants Payments 

Subclass who paid a fee to LBN, including 

any initial payment or set up fee. 

2. Binding Effect of Order. This Order applies to all 

claims or causes of action settled under the Settlement 

Agreement, and binds all Class Members, including those who did 

not properly request exclusion under paragraph eight of the 

Preliminary Approval and Provisional Class Certification Order, 

Docket No. 144. This Order does not bind persons who filed 

timely and valid requests for exclusion. The persons who 

properly requested to be excluded from the Settlement are listed 

in Exhibit D to the Declaration of Jennifer Keough, Docket No. 

152-2. 

3. Objections Overruled. The Court has considered and 

hereby overrules all objections brought to the Court’s attention, 

whether properly filed or not. 

The parties clarified and agreed during the December 9, 

2020, hearing, (1) that attorneys’ fees will not be paid before 

eligible Settlement Class Members receive their cash payment 

under the Settlement; (2) that the Settlement Class Members will 

not be releasing any personal injury claims; (3) that the release 

carves out claims brought by state attorneys general; and (4) 

that the release will not preclude state attorneys general from 

obtaining restitution or other relief on behalf of consumers. 

Accordingly, the objections of the attorneys general of New York, 

Virginia, and Massachusetts (attorneys general) with respect to 

these matters are overruled as moot. See Reply Br. by the 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 5 of 13
6 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

Attorneys General at 3, Docket No. 155 (stating that the parties’ 

clarifications “resolve” the objections of the attorneys general 

with respect to the aforementioned matters). 

The attorneys general object to the Settlement on the 

grounds that the monetary relief that eligible Settlement Class 

Members will receive is unjustifiably delayed and discounted, and 

that the terms describing the timing of LBN’s cash payments are 

not sufficiently clear. The Court overrules this objection on 

the grounds that the parties have shown that the timing and 

amounts of the monetary relief at issue are appropriate in light 

of LBN’s strained financial situation, and that the Settlement is 

sufficiently definite as to the timing for when LBN must make and 

complete the cash payments required by the Settlement. Moreover, 

Plaintiffs represent, and the Court finds, that the other relief 

that LBN is required to provide pursuant to the Settlement, which 

will not be delayed or reduced as a result of LBN’s financial 

situation, is the most significant and important aspect of the 

Settlement Class Members’ recovery under the Settlement, and that 

this weighs in favor of granting final approval of the 

Settlement. 

The attorneys general also object to the notice plan, 

arguing that, unless the Court requires the Settlement 

Administrator to send additional text messages or direct mailings 

to the Settlement Class Members, the notice plan does not satisfy 

the requirements of Rule 23 and due process. The Court overrules 

this objection on the grounds that (1) the parties represent that 

the Settlement Class Members change residences frequently and 

that text messages are, therefore, the method of communication 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 6 of 13
7 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

most likely to be effective in reaching them; (2) the text 

messages that the Settlement Administrator has sent to date were 

sent to the most recent numbers that LBN has for Settlement Class 

Members; (3) the notice plan required forms of notice other than, 

and in addition to, text messages, including direct postcard 

notice to the Settlement Class Members who could not be 

reasonably reached by text message, published notice, mailed 

notice to the American Immigration Lawyers Association and 

National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild, and 

publication of the notice on the Settlement Website; and (4) 

there is evidence that the notice plan was effective, as the 

settlement website had more than 6,000 visitors and the 

settlement phone number received more than 2,000 calls. In light 

of the foregoing, the Court finds that the notice plan was the 

best practicable under the circumstances and that it satisfies 

the requirements of Rule 23 and due process. See, e.g., Rosas v. 

Sarbanand Farms, LLC, No. C18-0112-JCC, 2019 WL 859225, at *2 

(W.D. Wash. Feb. 22, 2019) (approving plan to notify settlement 

class members “by text message” as the best practicable on the 

ground that “class members do not have permanent addresses in the 

U.S. and class counsel has 96 percent of their phone numbers”); 

Avendano v. Averus, Inc., No. 14-CV-01614-CMA-MJW, 2016 WL 

11692088, at *2 (D. Colo. Oct. 25, 2016) (“Given the undisputed 

transient nature of the class and Plaintiff’s assertion that text 

messaging is the most reliable form of communication, the Court 

finds that notification by text message is likely to be a viable 

and efficient means of notifying many prospective members of this 

collective action.”). 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 7 of 13
8 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

Objector Oscar Campos, who is represented by Kelly Salzmann 

of the Legal Aid Justice Center, objects to the Settlement, 

arguing that it is not clear as to whether Settlement Class 

Members will be able to assert an affirmative defense of fraud in 

the inducement or lack of contract formation to the extent that 

LBN or third parties attempt to collect on Settlement Class 

Members’ debts in the future. The Court overrules this objection 

on the ground that the Settlement does not expressly waive any 

affirmative defense that any Settlement Class Member may raise in 

any future debt collection proceedings filed by LBN against any 

Settlement Class Member. 

4. No Admission. Neither this Final Approval Order and 

Judgment nor the Agreement is an admission or concession by LBN 

of the validity of any claims or of any liability or wrongdoing 

or of any violation of law and not an admission by Plaintiffs 

that their claims lacked merit. 

5. Dismissal. This Court hereby dismisses with prejudice 

this Action and all claims of Class Representatives and 

Settlement Class Members against LBN that have been, or could 

have been, alleged in the Action arising out of or relating in 

any way to any of the legal, factual, or other allegations made 

in the Action, or any legal theories that could have been raised 

based on the allegations of the Action. 

6. Release. Plaintiffs and all Settlement Class Members who 

did not properly request exclusion are deemed to have released 

and discharged LBN from all claims arising out of or relating in 

any way to any of the legal, factual, or other allegations made 

in the Action, or any legal theories that could have been raised 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 8 of 13
9 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

based on the allegations of the Action, including without 

limitation allegations made in any version of the complaint filed 

in the Action and claims released under the Settlement Agreement, 

as described in the Agreement. 

7. By operation of this judgment, Plaintiffs, but not 

Settlement Class Members, also expressly waive any and all 

claims, rights, or benefits they may have under California Civil 

Code § 1542 and any similar federal or state law, right, rule, or 

legal principle that may apply. California Civil Code § 1542 

provides as follows: 

A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS 

THAT THE CREDITOR OR RELEASING PARTY DOES 

NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS OR HER 

FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE 

AND THAT, IF KNOWN BY HIM OR HER, WOULD HAVE 

MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS OR HER SETTLEMENT 

WITH THE DEBTOR OR RELEASED PARTY. 

8. LBN releases, waives, and forever discharges Plaintiffs 

and each Member of the Payments Subclasses (“Plaintiff 

Releasees”) who has fully paid his or her obligations to LBN and 

who has not opted out of the Settlement Class from any and all 

claims it has or may have against the Plaintiff Releasees with 

respect to any claim for existing Program Payments or fees. 

9. Injunction Against Asserting Released Claims. Class 

Representatives and the Settlement Class Members, and LBN, having 

released all claims as described above, are permanently enjoined 

from commencing or prosecuting any of those claims against the 

released parties as described above, provided, however, that this 

injunction shall not apply to individual claims of Settlement 

Class Members who properly excluded themselves from the 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 9 of 13
10 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

Settlement Class, who are listed in Exhibit D to the Declaration 

of Jennifer Keough, Docket No. 152-2. This injunction is 

necessary to protect and effectuate the Settlement, this Final 

Approval Order and Judgment, and the Court’s flexibility and 

authority to effectuate this settlement and to enter judgment 

when appropriate, and is ordered in aid of the Court’s 

jurisdiction and to protect its judgments pursuant to 28 U.S.C. 

§ 1651(a). 

10. Class Relief. The Settlement Amount will be used to 

provide benefits to or on behalf of the Settlement Class as set 

forth in the Agreement. Payments shall be made according to the 

schedule set forth in the Agreement. 

a. Cash relief. The Settlement Administrator shall 

issue a payment to each Former and Current Program Participant 

Payments Subclass Member and Sponsor Payments Subclass Member in 

accordance with the Agreement. If there is an amount remaining 

following the initial distribution such that each recipient would 

receive at least $5 in a secondary distribution, then there shall 

be a secondary distribution, as stated in the Agreement. If any 

funds remain after this second distribution, or if there is an 

amount less than $5 per recipient following the initial 

distribution, those funds shall be paid to the Cy Pres Recipients 

in accordance with the Agreement. 

b. Debt relief. The remainder of the Settlement 

Amount, after payment of the cash relief referenced above, Notice 

and other Administrative Costs, any Incentive Award as set forth 

herein, and any Fee and Expense Award as set forth herein, will 

consist of credits to be made to the accounts of current program 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 10 of 13
11 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

participants for past due program fees due and owing as of the 

date the Plaintiffs filed their motion for Preliminary Approval, 

as set forth in the Agreement. 

c. Additional monetary relief. As set forth in the 

Agreement, members of the Current Program Participant Subclass 

will benefit from several financial changes to their contracts 

with LBN and LBN’s business practices. First, Program 

Participants who make three (3) consecutive monthly payments on 

time and in full will have their monthly recurring fee reduced by 

ten percent (10%) [the Consecutive Payment Discount]. Program 

Participants who make an additional three (3) consecutive monthly 

payments on time and in full (for a total of 6 consecutive on 

time and in full payments) will have their monthly recurring fee 

reduced by a further ten percent (10%) from the original fee 

amount set for each program participant [the Second Consecutive 

Payment Discount] for a total of a twenty percent (20%) discount 

from their original recurring fee. Second, Program Participants 

who pay more than $420 per month in monthly recurring program 

fees, and pay on time and in full by the first of the month, 

shall have their payment that month reduced to $415. Third, LBN 

will impose a total payment cap for Program Payments, excluding 

the initial payment and set up fees made by the program 

participants or their sponsors, to an amount not to exceed the 

face amount of the bond. Fourth, LBN will stop all monthly 

payments upon termination of immigration proceedings. Fifth, LBN 

will provide fee waivers of at least $150,000 per year to Program 

Participants. 

d. Other business practice changes. LBN will also 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 11 of 13
12 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

provide programmatic and other non-monetary benefits to 

Settlement Class Members through other business practice changes 

set forth in the Agreement, which include but are not limited to: 

(1) translating written and verbal contracts and posting them 

online; (2) providing clear and concise contract terms; (3) using 

best efforts to ensure meaningful program participant and sponsor 

review of contracts prior to signing; (4) not making any 

immigration-related threats; (5) modifying language on criminal 

prosecution; (5) representing that LBN has no present intent to 

collect certain debt from program participants or their sponsors; 

(6) removing GPS monitors in a timely manner for pregnancy or 

medical necessity, or upon termination of immigration 

proceedings; (7) not requiring leg-affixed GPS monitors for new 

program participants with bonds of less than $7,500 (impacting 

approximately 19% of program participants); (8) transitioning to 

technologically upgraded ankle monitors that are less intrusive 

and do not require program participants to stay in place to 

charge the monitors, by December 31, 2020, at the latest; and (9) 

using commercially reasonable efforts to transition away from use 

of ankle monitors altogether and to instead use wrist bracelet 

monitors or other similarly less intrusive monitors, such as 

cellular telephones or periodic check-ins, by December 31, 2021, 

at the latest. Further details as to these business practices 

and any exceptions are set forth in the Settlement Agreement. 

11. Attorneys’ Fees and Costs. Class Counsel is awarded 

$800,000 total in attorneys’ fees and costs to be paid from the 

Settlement Amount, but not the Cash Settlement Fund, in 

accordance with the terms set forth in the Settlement Agreement 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 12 of 13
13 

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

United States District Court 

Northern District of California 

and pursuant to the parties’ representations during the hearing 

on December 9, 2020. 

12. Incentive Award. Plaintiffs are each awarded $10,000 as 

a service award to be paid from the Settlement Amount, but not 

the Cash Settlement Fund, in accordance with the terms set forth 

in the Agreement. 

13. Settlement Administrator Costs. The Court approves the 

payment to the Settlement Administrator of a total amount not to 

exceed $80,000, to be paid from the Settlement Amount, but not 

the Cash Settlement Fund. 

14. Judgment. The Court finds that there is no reason for 

delay and directs the Clerk to enter judgment in accordance with 

the terms of this Order. 

15. Court’s Jurisdiction. Without affecting the finality of 

this Final Approval Order and Judgment, pursuant to the Parties’ 

request, the Court retains jurisdiction over this Action and the 

Parties pursuant to the terms of the Agreement. 

16. Status Report. Within thirty days of the date when cash 

payments to Authorized Claimants are completed, or December 31, 

2023, whichever comes first, Class Counsel shall file a status 

report to the Court specifying the total amount paid to 

Authorized Claimants and the total amount of uncashed checks that 

will be paid to the approved Cy Pres Recipients. 

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

Dated: February 8, 2021 

CLAUDIA WILKEN 

United States District Judge 

Case 4:17-cv-00755-CW Document 184 Filed 02/08/21 Page 13 of 13