Case No. 8:11-Cv-01733-FMO (Anx)
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Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 1 of 61 Page ID #:5312 1 Case No. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Steven A. Schwartz (pro hac vice) 2 Jeffrey M. Cohon (CSBN 131431) Timothy N. Mathews (pro hac vice) Howard Pollak (CSBN 147077 ) 3 CHIMICLES & TIKELLIS LLP COHON & POLLAK, LLP 361 West Lancaster Avenue 4 10250 Constellation Boulevard, Suite 2320 Haverford, Pennsylvania 19041 Los Angeles, California 90067 5 Telephone: (610) 642-8500 Telephone: (310) 231-4470 Telecopier: (610) 649-3633 6 Facsimile: (310) 231-4610 [email protected] [email protected] 7 [email protected] 8 Charles S. Fax (pro hac vice) Nicole Sugnet (CSBN 246255) Liesel J. Schopler (pro hac vice) 9 LEIFF CABRASER HEIMANN & RIFKIN WEINER LIVINGSTON, BERNSTEIN, LLP 10 LLC 275 Battery Street, 29th Floor 7979 Old Georgetown Road, Suite 400 11 San Francisco, California 94111-3339 Bethesda, Maryland 20814 Telephone: (415) 956-1000 12 Telephone: (301) 951-0150 Telecopier: (415) 956-1008 Telecopier: (301) 951-6535 13 [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] 14 [email protected] 15 Attorneys for Plaintiffs David H. Weinstein (CSBN 43167) 16 Robert Kitchenoff (pro hac vice) 17 WEINSTEIN KITCHENOFF & ASHER LLC 18 100 South Broad St., Suite 705 19 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19110-1061 Telephone: (215) 545-7200 20 Telecopier: (215) 545-6535 21 [email protected] [email protected] 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS CASE NO. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 2 of 61 Page ID #:5313 1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE CENTRAL DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 2 3 STEVE CHAMBERS, et al., on behalf Case No. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) of themselves and all others similarly situated, Honorable Fernando M. Olguin 4 5 Plaintiffs, Date: August 25, 2016 Time: 10:00 am 6 v. Place: Courtroom 22 WHIRLPOOL CORPORATION, et al., 7 Defendants. 8 9 10 11 12 MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION 13 FOR AWARD OF ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS CASE NO. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 3 of 61 Page ID #:5314 1 TABLE OF CONTENTS 2 TABLE OF AUTHORITIES . iii 3 I. INTRODUCTION . 1 4 II. BACKGROUND . 3 5 A. The Dishwasher Owners Were Effectively Represented by 6 Distinguished Counsel . 4 7 B. The Settlement Was Achieved After Extensive, 8 Intensive Litigation . 6 9 C. The Settlement Provides Full Recovery, Promotes Safety and 10 Represents a Significant Victory for Consumers . 7 11 III. THE REQUESTED FEE IS FAIR, REASONABLE AND JUSTIFIED. 10 12 A. The Fee Award Should Be Determined By The Lodestar-Plus- 13 Multiplier Method. 11 14 1. Class Counsel’s Lodestar Is Reasonab le . 15 15 a. Class Counsel’s Hourly Rates are Reasonable . 16 16 b. The Number of Hours Class Counsel Worked is 17 Reasonable. 19 18 2. The Requested Multiplier Is Appropriate. 25 19 a. Class Counsel Achieved a Favorable Class-Wide 20 Result. 26 21 b. This Case Involved Numerous Complex and Novel 22 Issues that Created a Significant Risk of Failure. 31 23 c. Class Counsel Assumed Significant Risk in 24 Prosecuting this Action on a Pure Contingency Basis. 32 25 d. Class Counsel’s Skill in Litigating and Settling these 26 Claims Further Supports the Requested Fee Award. 34 27 B. A Percentage Cross-Check Supports The Propriety Of The 28 Requested Fee. 34 i MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS CASE NO. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 4 of 61 Page ID #:5315 1 IV. CLASS COUNSEL SHOULD BE REIMBURSED FOR THEIR 2 OUT-OF-POCKET EXPENSES, WHICH ARE REASONABLE. 44 3 V. THE REQUESTED SERVICE AWARDS FOR THE NAMED 4 PLAINTIFFS ARE REASONABLE AND SHOULD BE APPROVED. 46 5 A. The Service Awards Are Reasonable And Justified. 46 6 B. The Payment Of $100,000 For Plaintiff Steve Chambers’ 7 Websites Is Reasonable And Fair. 47 8 VI. CONCLUSION . 50 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 ii MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS CASE NO. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 5 of 61 Page ID #:5316 1 TABLE OF AUTHORITIES 2 CASES 3 Ardon v. City of Los Angeles, 52 Cal. 4th 421 (2011) . 6 4 Berger v. Property I.D. Corp., No. CV 05-5373-GHK (CWx), Dkt. No. 899 5 (C.D. Cal. Jan. 28, 2009) . 17 6 Beck-Ellman v. Kaz USA, Inc., 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 189308 7 (S.D. Cal. June 11, 2013) . 43, 49 8 Blackwell v. Foley, 724 F. Supp. 2d 1068 (N.D. Cal. 2010) . 20 9 Boeing v. Van Gemert, 444 U.S. 472 (1980) . 35, 36 10 Browne v. American Honda Motor Co., 2010 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 144823 11 (C.D. Cal. Oct. 5, 2010) . 22 12 Browning v. Yahoo! Inc., 2007 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 86266 13 (N.D. Cal. Nov. 16, 2007) . 36 14 Building a Better Redondo, Inc. v. City of Redondo Beach , 15 203 Cal. App. 4th 852 (2012) . 24 16 Cabrales v. Cnty. of Los Angeles, 935 F.2d 1050 (9th Cir. 1991) . 22 17 Camacho v. Bridgeport Fin., Inc., 523 F.3d 973 (9th Cir. 2008) . 16 18 Caudle v. Bristow Optical Co., Inc., 224 F.3d 1014 (9th Cir. 2000) . 14, 19 19 Center for Biological Diversity v. Cnty. of San Bernardino, 20 185 Cal. App. 4th 866 (2010) . 22 21 Chavez v. Netflix, Inc., 162 Cal. App. 4th 43 (2008) . 33 22 Chemical Bank v. City of Seattle (In re Washington Pub. Power Supply Sys. Sec. 23 Litig.), 19 F.3d 1291 (9th Cir. 1994) . 32 24 Cook v. Niedert, 142 F.3d 1004 (7th Cir. 1998) . 46 25 Coordination Proceeding Special Title Rule 1550b, 2004 Cal. Super. 26 LEXIS 257, *25 (2004) . 20 27 Craft v. County of San Bernardino, 624 F. Supp. 2d 1113 (C.D. Cal. 2008) . 26 28 iii MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS CASE NO. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 6 of 61 Page ID #:5317 1 Enterprise Energy Corp. v. Columbia Gas Transmission Corp., 37 F.R.D. 240 2 (S.D. Ohio 1991) . 47 3 Feliciano v. Gonzalez, 13 F. Supp. 2d 151 (D. P.R. 1998) . 5 4 Gascho v. Global Fitness Holdings, LLC, 2014 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 46846 5 2014 WL 1350509 (S.D. Ohio Apr. 4, 2014) . 41 6 Goldkorn v. County of San Bernardino, 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17934 7 (C.D. Cal. Feb. 13, 2012) . 13, 14 8 Hanlon v. Chrysler Corp., 150 F.3d 1011 (9th Cir. 1998) . 11, 14, 15, 31, 34 9 Hawthorne v. Umpqua Bank, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 56370 10 (N.D. Cal. Apr. 28, 2015) . 47 11 Henderson v. Volvo Cars of N. Am., LLC, 2013 U.S. Dist. 12 LEXIS 46291 (D.N.J. Mar. 22, 2013) . 17 13 Hensley v. Eckerhart, 461 U.S. 424 (1983) . 15, 22 14 Hopson v. Hanesbrands, Inc., 2009 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 33900 15 (N.D. Cal. Apr. 3, 2009) . 47 16 Horsford v. Board of Trustees, 132 Cal. App. 4th 359 (2005) . 24 17 Hughes v. Microsoft Corp., 2001 WL 34089697 (W.D. Wash. Mar. 26, 2001) . 47 18 In re A-Power Energy Generation Systems, Ltd. Securities Litig., 19 No. MDL 11-2302-GE (CWx), Dkt. No. 123 (C.D. Cal. Aug. 29, 2013) . 17 20 In re Cenco Inc. Sec. Litig., 519 F. Supp. 322 (N.D. Ill. 1981) . 30 21 In re Consumer Privacy Cases, 175 Cal. App. 4th 545, 22 96 Cal. Rptr. 3d 127 (2009) . 14, 15, 34 23 In re Linerboard Antitrust Litig., MDL No. 1261, 2004 U.S. Dist. 24 LEXIS 10532, *36 (E.D. Pa. June 2, 2004) . 20 25 In re Media Vision Tech. Sec. Litig., 913 F. Supp. 1362 (N.D. Cal. 1996) . 44 26 In re Mego Fin. Corp. Sec. Litig., 213 F.3d 454 (9th Cir. 2000) . 47 27 In re Online DVD-Rental Antitrust Litig., 779 F.3d 934, 953 (9th Cir. 2015) . 42 28 In re Pacific Enterprises Sec. Litig., 47 F.3d 373 (9th Cir. 1995) . 44 iv MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF PLAINTIFFS’ MOTION FOR ATTORNEYS’ FEES AND EXPENSES AND FOR SERVICE AWARDS FOR PLAINTIFFS CASE NO. 8:11-cv-01733-FMO (ANx) Case 8:11-cv-01733-FMO-AN Document 218-1 Filed 05/06/16 Page 7 of 61 Page ID #:5318 1 In re Philips/Magnavox TV Litig., 2012 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 67287 2 (D.N.J. May 14, 2012) . 18 3 In re Real Estate Associates Limited Partnerships Litigation, 4 No.