$6.9M in attorney fees awarded to class counsel in engine defect case

Kia, Hyundai engine defect class counsel gets $6.9M in attorney fees

A federal judge awarded $6.9 million in attorney fees and $175,000 in costs to plaintiffs' counsel who negotiated a multimillion dollar settlement in a class action that accused Hyundai Motor America Inc. and Kia Motors America Inc. of failing to disclose a defect in engines that resulted in fires.

Last year, Hyundai and Kia agreed to put aside $760 million to settle the claims but that number could rise as claims are still being submitted, according to Adam Gonnelli of the Law Office of Adam Gonnelli in New York, one of the attorneys representing the class. In re: Hyundai and Kia Engine Litigation, 8:17-CV-838 (C.D. Cal., filed May 10, 2017).

On Monday, the four-year anniversary of the filing of the lawsuit, U.S. District Judge Josephine L. Staton issued a final order approving the settlement, which covers nearly four million vehicles. Class members will also receive lifetime warranties for their engines, will be reimbursed for repair, towing and rentals, and be given cash payments for inconvenience due to repair delays and loss of value.

"Although the exact value of the settlement cannot be quantified with precision, as the processing of claims is still ongoing and part of the relief is not easily monetized, defendants earmarked $760,000,000 to implement the terms of the Settlement," Staton wrote.

The class counsel includes Matthew D. Schelkopf of Sauder Schelkopf; Bonner Walsh of Walsh PLLC; and Steve W. Berman of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP.

The defense team was led by Kari E. Wohlschlegel, Tina T. Lo, Christine Weijia Chen and Shon Morgan of Quinn Emanuel Urquhart and Sullivan LLP.

-- Gina Kim