Fengler et al v. Crouse Health Foundation, Inc. et al
Filing
369
ORDER GRANTING FINAL APPROVAL OF CLASS AND COLLECTIVE ACTION SETTLEMENT: Final Approval of Class and Collective Action Settlement granted as noted herein. Signed by Judge David N. Hurd on 11/1/2013. (nmk)
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK
----------------------------------MARIANNE MEYERS; on behalf of herself and
all other employees similarly situated,
Plaintiff,
-v-
5:08-CV-1221
CROUSE HEALTH SYSTEM, INC.; CROUSE
HEALTH HOSPITAL, INC.; PAUL KRONENBERG,
MD; JOHN BERGEMANN; and CROUSE HOSPITAL
401K RETIREMENT PLAN,
Defendants.
------------------------------------------APPEARANCES:
OF COUNSEL:
THOMAS & SOLOMON LLP
Attorneys for Plaintiff
693 East Avenue
Rochester, NY 14607
PATRICK J. SOLOMON, ESQ.
GUY A. TALIA, ESQ.
BOND, SCHOENECK & KING, PLLC
Attorneys for Defendants
One Lincoln Center
Syracuse, NY 13202
LOUIS ORBACH, ESQ.
DAVID N. HURD
United States District Judge
ORDER GRANTING FINAL APPROVAL OF CLASS AND
COLLECTIVE ACTION SETTLEMENT
WHEREAS, on or about May 14, 2013, Named Plaintiff Marianne Meyers, for
herself and on behalf of the Opt-In Plaintiffs and proposed Settlement Classes, on the one
hand, and Crouse Health Hospital, Inc., for itself and on behalf of the other Defendants in
this Action, on the other hand, entered into a Settlement Agreement, contingent on Court
approval; and
WHEREAS, on May 24, 2013, the Parties filed a Joint Motion for Preliminary
Approval of the Settlement; and
WHEREAS, on July 3, 2013, the Court entered an Order granting preliminary
approval of the Settlement, and preliminarily certifying the Settlement Classes (the
"Preliminary Approval Order"); and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23, the Court directed
that Notice of the proposed Settlement and the applicable procedures and schedules be sent
to the members of the Settlement Classes (the "Class Members"); and
WHEREAS, pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23, Class Members were
given the opportunity to object to the Settlement and/or to request to be excluded from the
Settlement Classes; and
WHEREAS, on October 11, 2013, Class Counsel filed a Motion for Final Approval
of the Settlement, an Award of Service Payments to the Named Plaintiff and Opt-in Plaintiffs,
and an Award of Attorneys’ Fees and Costs, which motion was not opposed by Defendants;
and
WHEREAS, on November 1, 2013, the Court held a Final Approval Hearing;
NOW, THEREFORE, IT IS HEREBY ORDERED, upon consideration of the
Settlement Agreement, and all papers filed and proceedings held in this Action, as follows:
1. Capitalized terms used in this Order and not otherwise defined herein shall have
the definitions assigned to them in the Settlement Agreement.
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2. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of this Action and over all
Parties to the Action, including all Class Members.
3. The Settlement Agreement, and the Settlement contained therein, is hereby fully,
finally, and unconditionally approved in all respects, and the Parties are hereby directed to
implement its terms. The Court finds that the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate in
all respects. The Court finds that the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate as to each
member of the Settlement Classes. The Court finds that extensive investigation, research,
and litigation has been conducted such that counsel for all Parties are able to evaluate the
respective risks of further litigation, including the additional costs, uncertainty, and delay
associated with further prosecution of this Action. The Court also finds that the Settlement is
the result of good faith, extensive, arms' length negotiations between experienced counsel
with the assistance of an independent and knowledgeable mediator.
4. The Court finds that the Settlement warrants final approval pursuant to Federal
Rule of Civil Procedure 23(e) because it is fair, adequate, and reasonable to the Settlement
Classes based upon: (1) the complexity, expense and likely duration of the litigation; (2) the
reaction of the Class Members to the Settlement; (3) the stage of the proceedings and the
amount of discovery completed; (4) the risks of establishing liability; (5) the risks of
establishing damages; (6) the risks of maintaining the class action through the trial; (7) the
ability of the Defendants to withstand a greater judgment; (8) the reasonableness of the
settlement fund in light of the best possible recovery; and (9) the reasonableness of the
settlement fund to a possible recovery in light of all the attendant risks of litigation.
5. The Court confirms as final its certification of the Settlement Classes, as
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defined in the Settlement Agreement and in Paragraph 3 of this Court's July 3, 2013
Preliminary Approval Order.
6. The Court confirms as final its finding that Named Plaintiff Marianne Meyers is
an adequate class representative for the Settlement Classes, and confirms as final its
appointment of her as the class representative of the Settlement Classes.
7. The Court confirms as final its finding that Patrick J. Solomon, Esq. and Guy A.
Talia, Esq. of the law firm of Thomas & Solomon, LLP are adequate to serve as Class
Counsel for the Settlement Classes, and confirms as final its appointment of them as Class
Counsel for the Settlement Classes.
8. The Notice and Claim Form that were sent to the Settlement Classes pursuant to
this Court's July 3, 2013 Preliminary Approval Order were accurate, objective and informative
and were the best practicable means of providing reasonable notice to Class Members of,
among other things: (a) the proposed Settlement and its effect, (b) the process available to
them to request a payment under the Settlement, (c) how they could object or opt out, (d) the
time and place of the Final Approval Hearing, and (e) the applications to be made by Class
Counsel for (i) attorneys fees and costs and (ii) service payments for the Named Plaintiff and
Opt-In Plaintiffs. The Court finds that notice of these matters to the Class Members was
accomplished in all material respects and that such notice fully met the requirements of
Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23, due process, the Constitution of the United States, the
laws of the State of New York, and all other applicable laws.
9. The Settlement and the Settlement Agreement are binding in all respects
on the Named Plaintiff and all Class Members who did not timely submit a valid and effective
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written request for exclusion from the Settlement Classes pursuant to the provisions of
Section 9(b) of the Settlement Agreement and Paragraph 14 of this Court's July 3, 2013
Preliminary Approval Order.
10. The Court finds that the Settlement Agreement's provisions for the funding of
the settlement Escrow Account and for the distribution of funds from that account, including,
without limitation, the Settlement Agreement's provisions for the calculation and payment of
individual awards to Claimants are fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Court orders that the
Escrow Account be funded and that payments be made according to the provisions of the
Settlement Agreement following the Effective Date of the Agreement.
11. The Court finds that the Administrative Costs in the amount of $58,210.47
are reasonable and approves payment to the Administrator of such Administrative Costs
from the settlement Escrow Account as specified in the Settlement Agreement following the
Effective Date of the Agreement.
12. The Court has reviewed the Releases set forth in Section 15 of the Settlement
Agreement and the Claim Form and finds that they are fair, reasonable, and enforceable
under the Fair Labor Standards Act and all other applicable laws. Class Members are
accordingly forever barred and enjoined from prosecuting the Released Claims against the
Released Parties.
13. The Parties entered into the Settlement Agreement solely for the purpose
of compromising and settling disputed claims. Defendants do not admit any violation of law
and do not admit any liability to the Named Plaintiff or the Settlement Classes, individually or
collectively. Neither the Settlement Agreement nor any other papers submitted to this Court
in connection with the Settlement shall be deemed an admission of any kind by any of the
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Parties or used as evidence against any of the Parties for any purpose in this Action or any
other suit, action, or proceeding, except that the Agreement may be introduced in any
proceeding for the sole purpose of enforcing its terms.
14. If, for any reason, the Effective Date of the Settlement Agreement does not
occur, the Settlement Agreement shall be deemed null and void, and shall not be used for
any purpose whatsoever in any further proceeding(s) in the Action or in any other suit, action,
or proceeding; the Court's certification of the Settlement Classes shall be void and of no
effect; this Order shall be vacated; and the Parties will be returned to their respective
positions nunc pro tunc as those positions existed immediately prior to the execution of the
Settlement Agreement.
15. In accordance with Sections 5 and 11 of the Settlement Agreement, Class
Counsel is hereby awarded attorneys' fees and costs (including Plaintiffs' mediation fees and
costs) in the amount of $497,937.50, to be paid from the settlement Escrow Account as
specified in the Settlement Agreement following the Effective Date of the Agreement. This
award represents 33.2% of the Total Settlement Amount. Such an award is reasonable in
light of the effort expended and the risk undertaken by Class Counsel and the results of such
efforts.
16. In accordance with Section 6 of the Settlement Agreement, Named Plaintiff
Marianne Meyers is hereby awarded a service payment in the amount of $5,000, to be paid
from the settlement Escrow Account as specified in the Settlement Agreement following the
Effective Date of the Agreement.
17. In accordance with Section 6 of the Settlement Agreement, the Opt-In Plaintiffs
(as defined in Section 3(a) of the Settlement Agreement) who have not timely submitted a
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valid and effective written request for exclusion from the Settlement Classes pursuant to the
provisions of Section 9(b) of the Settlement Agreement and Paragraph 13 of this Court's July
3, 2013 Preliminary Approval Order are hereby awarded service payments in the amount of
$100 each, to be paid from the settlement Escrow Account as specified in the Settlement
Agreement following the Effective Date of the Agreement.
18. The service payments awarded above are to compensate the Named Plaintiff
for the risks borne in commencing the Action and to compensate her and the Opt-In Plaintiffs
for the time and effort expended in assisting in the prosecution of the Action. These service
payments are in addition to any amounts the Named Plaintiff or Opt-In Plaintiffs may
otherwise receive from the Settlement as members of the Settlement Classes under the
Settlement Agreement.
19. Upon the Effective Date of the Settlement Agreement, this Action shall be
deemed dismissed with prejudice in its entirety. The Parties are to bear their own costs,
except as otherwise provided in the Settlement Agreement and this Order. The Court shall
retain jurisdiction over this Action for the purpose of resolving any issues relating to the
administration, implementation, or enforcement of the Settlement Agreement and this Order.
20. The Court finds that the Defendants properly and timely notified the appropriate
state and federal officials of the Settlement, pursuant to the Class Action Fairness Act of
2005 ("CAFA"), 28 U.S.C. § 1715, and orders that Defendants have fully complied with 28
U.S.C. § 1715.
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IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: November 1, 2013
Utica, New York.
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