It was announced on February 1st that Keller Williams has reached a settlement in the litigation with respect to the Sitzer/Burnett lawsuit.
This settlement, along with all copycat cases, will have Keller Williams pay out $70 million to settle this major class-action commissions lawsuit.
The settlement will still require the judge’s approval but the effort by KW was to release the company and its agents from litigation related to the commissions paid to buyers’ agents. Gary Keller, founder of KW, expressed his thankfulness to be able to come to this agreement, in order to provide its agents and franchisees the needed relief and stability from the distraction of this ongoing action.
The settlement does not reflect or implicate that Keller Williams was at fault, but simply to mitigate many of the issues surrounding the concern from the ongoing legal actions.
The original lawsuit with its verdict of October 31st awarded Missouri home sellers nearly $1.8 billion in damages based upon an antitrust case. Other real estate franchises, such as RE/MAX and Anywhere, reached agreements prior to this. Anywhere agreed to pay $83.5 million in damages and RE/MAX settled for $55 million. All the deals and settlements that have been proposed still require the judge’s final approval.
These settlements are already giving these franchises peace of mind with the understanding that. settlements that have been agreed to will stand.
Moving forward, Keller Williams does promise to require transparency regarding compensation as to commission requirements in franchise agreements and other policies. Another component of the settlement is that, Keller Williams will no longer require NAR membership for its agents or franchisees.
In the ongoing litigation the National Association of Realtors has requested that all 19 commission-related cases be consolidated.
If you have any questions about this information or title insurance, please contact Ralph Aponte: 732.914.1400.
Counsellors Title Agency, www.counsellorstitle.net, founded in 1996, is one of New Jersey’s most respected title agencies, serving all 21 New Jersey counties with title insurance, clearing title, escrow, tidelands searches, and closing and settlement services for commercial or industrial properties, waterfront properties and marinas, condominiums, townhouses or residential single-family homes. Counsellors Title also features its own Attorney Settlement Assistance Program™ [ASAP], which is an individual resource customized to fit the needs specifically of real estate attorneys, including, Documentation, Preparation, Disbursement of Funds, Attendance at Closing, HUD Preparation or Post-Closing Matters.
Connect with Ralph on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ralphaponte/