A District Court judge in Connecticut has approved a settlement in a Fair Debt Collection Practices Act class-action lawsuit after the defendant was accused of sending collection letters that improperly assessed post-judgment interest. The defendant has agreed to pay $10,000 to the members of the class, $3,000 to the named plaintiff, and nearly $37,000 in legal fees to the plaintiffs’ attorneys.
A copy of the order approving the terms of the settlement in the case of Esposito v. Nations Recovery Center can be accessed by clicking here.
The class consisted of 61 residents living in Connecticut to received letters from the defendant that improperly assess post-judgment interest. About half of the members of the class were unreachable. The remaining 28 members received checks for $357.14 each and the named plaintiff received $3,000. In determining the size of the settlement, the court applied the 1% of the defendant’s net worth limit on damages under the FDCPA, determining that the defendant had a net worth of about $1 million at the time the settlement agreement was entered into.
Judge Vanessa Bryant of the District Court for the District of Connecticut did not alter the amount sought by the plaintiffs’ attorneys, awarding one 29.25 hours at $450 per hour and the other for 40.9 hours at $400 per hour. All told, the total attorneys’ fee award was $36.867.45.
The defendant sought to reduce the hourly rate for one attorney, but Judge Bryant deemed the fee reasonable based on “his excellent and successful work in this case.” Judge Bryant also deemed the overall settlement to be “more than fair.”
