Flott et al v. Hair Salons, Inc. et al

Filing 61

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER granting 51 Plaintifs' Motion for Attorney Fees. Class Counsel are awarded $14,500.00 as reasonable fees, expenses and administrative costs to be paid by defendant Hair Salons, Inc., pursuant to the terms of the Settlement Agreement. Ordered by Chief Judge Joseph F. Bataillon. (JAB)

-TDT Flott et al v. Hair Salons, Inc. et al

Doc. 61

IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEBRASKA DORIS FLOTT, DEB HILGER, LINDSEY JONES, and ARLENE ORR, Plaintiffs, v. HAIR SALONS, INC., Defendant. ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) ) )

8:09CV3211

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

This matter is before the court on the plaintiffs' motion for attorneys' fees and expenses, Filing No. 51. This court has approved the parties' Class Settlement and Release (hereinafter, "Settlement Agreement"). Filing No. 59. In the Settlement Agreement, the parties agreed to pay the plaintiffs' reasonable fees and expenses and administrative costs in the amount of $14,500.00, over and above other payments by defendant to the class. Id. at 2, ¶ III(a)(ii) and (iii). Notice of the provision was provided to class members. See Filing No. 47, Attachment 1 at 4. No one has objected to the fees. Plaintiffs' counsel has shown that 174.9 hours of attorney and paralegal time have been expended on the case and that the total fees would be $20,577.20, at rates of $175.00 per hour for attorneys and $70.00 per hour for paralegals. Filing No. 53,

Declaration of Craig F. Martin. Based on its familiarity with rates for legal services in this community, the court finds the plaintiffs' counsels' rates are fair and reasonable. The court further finds that the hours expended are reasonable for a class action of this complexity.

Dockets.Justia.com

The negotiated award is also reasonable as compared to fair market rates. Accordingly, the court finds the plaintiffs' motion for attorneys' fees should be granted. IT IS HEREBY ORDERED: 1. 2. Plaintiffs' motion for an award of fees (Filing No. 51) is granted. Class Counsel are awarded $14,500.00 as reasonable fees, expenses and administrative costs to be paid by defendant Hair Salons, Inc., pursuant to the terms of the Settlement Agreement. DATED this 7th day of December, 2010. BY THE COURT:

s/ Joseph F. Bataillon Chief District Court Judge

*This opinion m a y contain hyperlinks to other docum e n ts or W e b sites. The U.S. District Court for th e District of Nebraska does not endorse, recom m e n d , approve, or guarantee any third parties or the services o r products they provide on their W e b sites. Likewise, the court has no agreem e n ts with any of these third p a r tie s or their W e b sites. The court accepts no responsibility for the availability or functionality of any h yp e r lin k . Thus, the fact that a hyperlink ceases to work or directs the user to som e other site does not affect t h e opinion of the court. 2