Opinion ID: 755571
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Clear-Sailing Fee Agreement

Text: Krell maintains the settling parties improperly entered into negotiations on counsel fees before concluding settlement negotiations. Krell hypothesizes that because Prudential wanted as broad a release as possible in order to avoid all future liability, they offered class counsel large fees. In both its Fairness Opinion and its Fee Opinion, the district court addressed Krell's contention the parties simultaneously negotiated the settlement and fee agreements. The district court found the parties obviated the danger of an actual or apparent conflict of interest on the part of class counsel by negotiating in a manner expressly recommended by the Third Circuit in Prandini and by a Task Force appointed by the Third Circuit to report on the subject of court awarded attorneys' fees. Fee Opinion, 962 F.Supp. at 577 (citing Court Awarded Attorney Fees, Report of the Third Circuit Task Force, 108 F.R.D. 237 (Oct. 8, 1995)). 112 Relying on the settling parties' sworn affidavits, 113 the district court found all parties acted appropriately, having first completed negotiation of the Settlement Agreement on September 22, 1996 and then obtained the court's authorization on October 11, 1996 to address fees. Id. at 577 n. 14; see also Fairness Opinion, 962 F.Supp. at 542 (The parties' negotiation of attorneys' fees was completely appropriate and followed the final settlement negotiations.). The court also found Krell had failed to produce sound evidence to support its contentions. We agree with the district court. There is no indication the parties began to negotiate attorneys' fees until after they had finished negotiating the settlement agreement. On review we grant deference to the district court's factual findings. Despite Krell's repeated references to the September 22, 1996 clear sailing fee provision, the Settlement Agreement signed on that date did not contain a clear sailing provision. Unlike Section K of the final Stipulation of Settlement filed on October 28, 1996, the September 22, 1996 Settlement Agreement did not address the amount of fees, the timetable for the payment of fees, or Prudential's agreement not to object to any fee petition filed by plaintiffs' counsel. As Lead Counsel notes, the September 22 Settlement Agreement contained a termination provision which allowed Prudential, but not plaintiffs, to terminate the agreement if the issue of attorneys' fees was not resolved to its satisfaction. 114 Lead Counsel Brief at 83-84.