Opinion ID: 779517
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Further Negotiations and Settlement

Text: 18 After Equitable announced its decision in February 1997 to settle Count One, the parties engaged in extensive negotiations over issues such as interest, benefits, and computations. The parties reached a full settlement approximately one year later. 19 The district court preliminarily approved the settlement (including certification of a class for purposes of the settlement) and, after class notice and a fairness hearing, entered a stipulated judgment. The amount of the settlement was roughly $18,475,500, which, with accumulated interest, increased to approximately $19,731,690 by September 2000. 20 The class notice stated that Plaintiffs' counsel would seek 10 percent of the funds recovered as attorney's fees. No class member filed an objection to that amount. Plaintiffs' counsel mailed a survey to each class member (approximately 6,500 agents) seeking feedback on the requested fee. Roughly 1,179 class members responded, supporting an average fee of 8.6 percent and a median fee of 10 percent.