Rehberg et al v. Flowers Foods, Inc et al

Filing 250

FINAL ORDER granting 244 Motion for Attorney Fees; granting 248 Motion for Settlement as outlined in this order. Signed by District Judge Max O. Cogburn, Jr on 6/30/2017. (chh)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF NORTH CAROLINA
CHARLOTTE DIVISION
DOCKET NO. 3:12-cv-00596-MOC-DSC
WILLARD ALLEN RILEY
MARIO RONCHETTI
SCOTT REHBERG, individually and on behalf of
all similarly situated individuals,
Plaintiffs,
Vs.
FLOWERS BAKING COMPANY OF
JAMESTOWN, LLC
FLOWERS FOODS, INC.,
Defendants.

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FINAL ORDER

THIS MATTER is before the court on the joint Motion for Final Approval of Class and
Collective Action Settlement (#248) and unopposed Motion for Attorney Fees, Costs, and Payment
of Service Awards (#244). Having considered those motions, the proposed settlements, the
presentation of the parties as made at the June 27, 2017, hearing, and reviewed the transcript of
that hearing, the court finds that all aspects of the Class Action Fairness Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1715,
have been fully complied with and that the settlement is a reasonable resolution of this dispute,
and that the fees, costs, and service awards are also reasonable as fair as more fully discussed at
the hearing, the court enters the following Order.
ORDER
IT IS, THEREFORE, ORDERED that the unopposed Motion for Attorney Fees, Costs,
and Payment of Service Awards (#244) is ALLOWED, and the Court AWARDS Class Counsel

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attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of expenses in the amount of $3.8 million. As the service
awards are to representative members of the class, such awards are addressed infra;
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that the joint Motion for Final Approval of Class and
Collective Action Settlement (#248) is GRANTED, as follows:
1.

All defined terms contained herein shall have the same meaning as set forth in the

Settlement Agreement executed by the Parties and filed with the Court.
2.

The Court has jurisdiction over the Parties, has subject-matter jurisdiction over the federal

law claims, and has supplemental jurisdiction over the state-law claims.
3.

The Court hereby approves the Settlement Agreement and the terms set forth therein as

fair, adequate, and reasonable, and hereby directs the Parties to perform, or cause to be performed,
the remaining terms of the Settlement as set forth in the Settlement Agreement. The Court
authorizes the payment by the Settlement Administrator, of Valid Claims that have been approved
by the Settlement Administrator, in accordance with the terms of the Settlement Agreement. The
Court further approves the Parties’ agreement to maintain a reserve fund of 1% of the settlement,
or $52,000 to be held for payments to self-identified Class members, if any.
4.

This Court hereby dismisses with prejudice this action, specifically including the Released

Claims.
5.

Upon entry of this Final Approval Order, all Named Plaintiffs and NCWHA Class

Members shall be deemed to have fully, finally, and forever released, relinquished, and discharged
all Released Claims, as defined in the Settlement Agreement, against all Releasees, that were
brought or which could have been brought in an action arising out of or relating to allegations of
misclassification as independent contractors set forth in the Complaint. In addition, FLSA

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Settlement Releasors who choose to release their FLSA claims against Releasees will be required
to execute a release of claims on the Current or Former Distributor FLSA Claim Form and Release.
6.

This Court finds that the administration of the Settlement process was performed in

accordance with the Preliminary Approval Order entered by this Court on March 17, 2017 (#242),
and that the Settlement Notice was reasonable, constituted the most practicable notice under the
circumstances, and complied with the requirements of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and
due process.
7.

This Court finds that the administration of the notice required by the Class Action Fairness

Act (“CAFA”), 28 U.S.C. § 1715, was performed in accordance with the Preliminary Approval
Order entered by this Court on March 17, 2017 (#242), and with the requirements of CAFA.
8.

Mark Dixon, XXX XXXXX XXXXX, Salisbury, NC 28146 is excluded from the

settlement and shall not be bound by this Order and shall not receive any benefits of the settlement.
9.

This Court hereby approves the Service Awards of $12,500 to Plaintiffs Scott Rehberg,

Willard Allen Riley, and Mario Ronchetti, and directs payment of that amount from the Class
Settlement Fund to each of them, in accordance with the terms of the Settlement Agreement.
10.

The parties’ request for appointment of Legal Aid of North Carolina, 224 S. Dawson Street,

Raleigh, NC 27601, as the cy pres beneficiary is approved.
11.

Neither the Settlement, nor any act performed or document executed pursuant to or in

furtherance of the Settlement, is or may be deemed to be or may be used as: (a) an admission of,
or evidence of, the validity of any Released Claim or any wrongdoing or liability of any Releasees;
(b) an admission or concession by Plaintiffs or any Class or Collective Action Member of an
infirmity in the claims asserted in the operative complaint filed in this action; (c) an admission of,

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or evidence of, any fault or omission of any of the Releasees in any civil, criminal, or
administrative proceeding in any court, administrative agency, or other tribunal.
12.

Without affecting the finality of this Judgment in any way, the Court hereby retains

continuing jurisdiction over: (a) the implementation of the Settlement; and (b) the Parties and their
counsel, and the Settlement Administrator, for the sole purpose of construing, enforcing, and
administering the Settlement and this Order.

The Clerk of Court is directed to enter Judgment reflecting this Final Order approving the
settlement and awarding fees, costs, and service awards.

Signed: June 30, 2017

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