In Re Washington Mutual, Inc. Securities, Derivative and ERISA Litigation
On August 6, 2010, the Honorable Marsha J. Pechman granted preliminary approval of the Class Action Settlement Agreement (“Settlement Agreement”).
Case History:
The Consolidated Second Amended Complaint in the ERISA litigation was filed in the United States District Court Western District of Washington (“District Court”) on behalf of Plaintiffs and a class of all persons who were participants in or beneficiaries of the Washington Mutual Savings Plan (the “Plan”) between October 19, 2005 and September 26, 2008 (the “Class Period”) and whose accounts included investments in Washington Mutual common stock during the Class Period.
Plaintiffs allege that during the Class Period Defendants breached their fiduciary duties to Plaintiffs and the Class members by:
- failing to prudently and loyally manage the Plan’s assets;
- failing to monitor fiduciaries;
- failing to disclose necessary information to co-fiduciaries;
- failing to provide complete and accurate information to the Class;
- co-fiduciary liability; and
- knowingly participating in a fiduciary breach.
The Settlement:
The Settlement provides for a payment of $49 million, net of expenses described in the Settlement Agreement, to the Plan for the benefit of the following Settlement Class:
All persons who were participants in or beneficiaries of the Plan at any time between October 19, 2005 and September 26, 2008, both dates inclusive, and whose individual Plan accounts included investment in Washington Mutual common stock; provided, however, that Defendants and their heirs, Successors-in-Interest, or assigns, to the extent they acquire an interest held by Defendants, are excluded from the Settlement Class.
The District Court has scheduled a hearing to evaluate the fairness and adequacy of the Settlement. At the Fairness Hearing, to be held November 5, 2010, at 3:30 p.m., the Court will consider Named Plaintiffs’ requests for final approval of the Settlement, for class certification, for approval of a proposed plan of allocation, for an award of attorneys’ fees and expenses, and for service awards to Named Plaintiffs. Any objection to the Settlement must be filed with the Court, and served upon the counsel listed in the Notice of Proposed Settlement by no later than October 22, 2010.
Case and Settlement Documents
Additional information regarding the Settlement is available at www.kellersettlements.com.