Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 1 of 7 Beth E. Terrell, Admitted Pro Hac Vice Email: bterrell@tmdwlaw.com Michael D. Daudt, Admitted Pro Hac Vice Email: mdaudt@tmdwlaw.com Jennifer Rust Murray, OSB #100389 Email: jmurray@tmdwlaw.com Mary B. Reiten Email: mreiten@tmdwlaw.com TERRELL MARSHALL DAUDT & WILLIE PLLC 936 North 34th Street, Suite 300 Seattle, Washington 98103-8869 Telephone: (206) 816-6603 Facsimile: (206) 350-3528 [Additional Counsel Appear on Signature Page] Attorneys for Plaintiffs UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF OREGON PORTLAND DIVISION KELLY OTT, and BENJAMIN GESLER, on behalf of themselves and all others similarly situated, NANCY LUEBBEN, NO. 3:14-cv-00645-ST v. Plaintiffs, MORTGAGE INVESTORS CORPORATION OF OHIO, INC., an Ohio corporation, also doing business as MORTGAGE INVESTORS CORPORATION, AMERIGROUP MORTGAGE CORPORATION, VETERANS INFORMATION DEPARTMENT and VETERANS HOME LOANS, DECLARATION OF ROB WILLIAMSON IN SUPPORT OF CLASS COUNSEL S MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT CLASS ACTION DEMAND FOR JURY TRIAL Magistrate Judge Janice M. Stewart Defendant.
Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 2 of 7 I, Rob Williamson, declare as follows: I. BACKGROUND AND EXPERIENCE 1. My background and experience are set forth in the Joint Declaration of Rob Williamson and Kim Williams (Dkt. 129). I respectfully submit this declaration in support of Class Counsel s Motion for an Award of Fees in connection with the settlement. Except as otherwise noted, I have personal knowledge of the facts set forth in this declaration, and could testify competently to them if called upon to do so. 2. Williamson & Williams is a two person law firm in Seattle, Washington that focuses on complex civil class action litigation. We have extensive experience in class actions, collective actions, and other complex matters. We have been appointed lead or co-lead class counsel in numerous cases at both the state and federal level. We have prosecuted and defended a variety of multi-million-dollar disputes. 3. I am the lead attorney from W&W in the instant litigation. 4. W&W has settled the following TCPA class actions: Scannell v. Verizon Directories Corp., et al (King County Superior Court Case No. 06-2-07169-7 SEA); In re Capital One Telephone Consumer Protection Act Litigation (United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation, MDL. No. 2416); Meilleur v. AT&T Corp. (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 11-01025 MJP); Chesbro v. Best Buy Stores (USDC Western District of Washington Case No C10-774 RAJ); Gardner v. Capital Options LLC, et al (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 07-1918 JCC); Clark, et al v. Payless Shoe Source, et al (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 09-0915 JCC); MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT - 1
Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 3 of 7 Hovila v. Tween Brands (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 09-0491 RSL); Global Education Services, Inc. v. Intuit, Inc. et al (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 09-0944 RSL); Hartman et al v. Comcast Business Communications, LLC, et al (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 10-00413 RSL); Baron v. Direct Capital, Inc. (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 09-669 JLR); Palmer v. Sprint Solutions, Inc., et al (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. C09-01211 JLR); and Kwan et al v. Clearwire Corporation, et al (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. C09-1392 JLR). 5. W&W also settled the following class actions involving other types of claims: Unpaid overtime claims against: McKenzie, et al v. Preston Gates & Ellis (King County Superior Court Case No. 02-2-34954-4 SEA); Pinget, et al v. Dryers Brand Ice Cream, Inc. (King County Superior Court No. 02-2-25028-9 KNT); Hill, et al v. Aramark Uniform & Career Apparel (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. C01-1998 L); and Miller, et al v. Farmer Brothers Co. (King County Superior Court Case No. 00-2-20684-4 SEA). refinance against: Claims for illegal fees charged by banks or servicers at the time of sale or Davis v. Homecomings Financial Network (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 05-1466 RSL); MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT - 2
Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 4 of 7 McCune v. Wilshire Credit Corporation (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 05-1511 TSZ); Hardie, et al v. Countrywide Home Loan Servicing LP (USDC Western District of Washington Case No. 08-CV-1286 RSL); Campbell v. Boeing Employees Credit Union (King County Superior Court Case No. 05-2-06283-5 SEA); Sunada, et al v. Washington Mutual Bank (King County Superior Court Case No. 00-2-31212-1 SEA); Hammer, et al v. Wells Fargo Home Mortgage (King County Superior Court Case No. 11-2-04830-6 SEA); and Groombridge v. World Savings Bank (King County Superior Court Case No. 04-2-03798-1 SEA). 6. Our firm has also represented numerous plaintiffs in the MDL proceedings resulting from nationwide litigation against latex gloves manufacturers, and was Lead Plaintiffs Counsel in the Washington federal court consolidated proceeding following remand from the MDL, and against Merck for injuries resulting from use of its arthritis medication, Vioxx. II. OVERVIEW OF W&W EFFORTS IN THIS ACTION B. W&W s Billing Rates 7. My regular practice is to keep contemporaneous time records, maintained on a daily basis, and describing tasks performed in 0.1 hour increments. 8. The following table lists my time of this case and current hourly rate. I took care to eliminate any time that was spent prosecuting Southwell v. Mortgage Investors Corp. of Ohio, C13-1289-MJP (W.D. Wash.) that was not related to this case. MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT - 3
Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 5 of 7 NAME AND POSITION DESCRIPTION OF WORK PERFORMED RATE HOURS BILLED TOTAL Rob Williamson Partner at Williamson and Williams Interviewing class members; researched and analyzed various legal and factual issues; worked on pleadings and memoranda; prepared for and took depositions, reviewed documents, prepared for mediation; attended mediation. $760 282 $214,320.00 9. W&W sets its rates for attorneys based on a variety of factors, including among others: the experience, skill, and sophistication required for the types of legal services typically performed; the rates customarily charged in similar matters; and the experience, reputation, and ability of the attorneys and staff members. 10. Our lodestar calculations are based on reasonable hourly rates. Courts in Western Washington have approved fee requests by W&W that were based on these rates (or similar rates in place at the time of application. The lodestar hourly rates at which judges in the Western District of Washington have approved for us in cases similar to this one are as follows: Judge Coughenour, in 2009, approved my lodestar at $760 per hour in the WADAD case, Gardner v. Capital Options LLC et al, (No. 07-1918), and, in 2012, at $600 in the WADAD case of Clark v. Payless Shoe Source et al (No. 09-0915-JCC). Judge Lasnik approved my lodestar at $760 per hour in the WADAD cases of Hovila v. Tween Brands (No. 09-0491 RSL) (2012), Global Education Services, Inc. v. Intuit, Inc. et al (No. 09-0944 RSL) (2011), and Hartman et al v. Comcast Business Communications, LLC et al (No. 10-00413 RSL) (2011). Judge Robart, in 2010, approved Rob Williamson s lodestar at $760 per hour in the WADAD case, Baron v. Direct Capital, Inc. (No. 09-669), in 2011 approved my rate at $760 per hour in the TCPA and WADAD case, Palmer v. Sprint Solutions, Inc. et al (No. 09-01211 JLR), and, in 2013, approved the same hourly rate in Kwan et al v. Clearwire Corporation et al (No. C09-1392). Judge Jones, in 2012, approved my lodestar at $760 per hour in the TCPA text message solicitation case of McClintic v. Lithia Motors, Inc. (No. C11- MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT - 4
Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 6 of 7 859 RAJ) and in September 2014, approved the same rate in Chesbro v. Best Buy Stores, L.P., C10-774 RAJ (W.D. Wash.). Finally Judge Pecham also approved the rate in March 2013, in Meilleur v. AT&T Corp., C11-01025 MJP (W.D. Wash.). III. CONTINGENT NATURE OF ACTION AND RISK 11. This matter has required W&W to spend time on this litigation that could have been spent on other matters. At various times during the litigation of this class action, this lawsuit has consumed my time, along with the time of my partner. Such time could otherwise have been spent on other fee-generating work. 12. W&W has always worked with no guarantee of being compensated for its time and efforts in this case. Payment of W&W s fees has always been contingent on successfully obtaining relief for Plaintiffs and Class members. I always believed and understood there was a substantial risk of non-payment. This belief and understanding was based upon past experience in class actions cases, and particularly in other TCPA class actions. I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of Washington and the United States that the foregoing is true and correct. EXECUTED at Seattle, Washington, this 18th day of September, 2015. /s/ Rob Williamson, Admitted Pro Hac Vice Rob Williamson, Admitted Pro Hac Vice MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT - 5
Case 3:14-cv-00645-ST Document 135 Filed 09/18/15 Page 7 of 7 CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, Jennifer Rust Murray, hereby certify that on September 18, 2015, I electronically filed the foregoing with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/ECF system which will send notification of such filing to the following: Stellman Keehnel, OSB No. 116460 E-mail: stellman.keehnel@dlapiper.com Nicole M. Tadano, Admitted Pro Hac Vice E-mail: nicole.tadano@dlapiper.com DLA PIPER LLP (US) 701 Fifth Avenue, Suite 7000 Seattle, Washington 98104-7044 Telephone: (206) 839-4800 Facsimile: (206) 839-4801 Lesli Esposito, Admitted Pro Hac Vice Email: lesli.esposito@dlapiper.com John Huh, Admitted Pro Hac Vice Email: john.huh@dlapiper.com DLA PIPER US LLP (PA) One Liberty Place, Suite 4900 1650 Market Street Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19103 Telephone: (215) 656-3300 Facsimile: (215) 656-3301 Attorneys for Defendant DATED this 18th day of September, 2015. TERRELL MARSHALL DAUDT & WILLIE PLLC By: /s/ Jennifer Rust Murray, OSB #100389 Jennifer Rust Murray, OSB #100389 Email: jmurray@tmdwlaw.com 936 North 34th Street, Suite 300 Seattle, Washington 98103-8869 Telephone: (206) 816-6603 Facsimile: (206) 350-3528 Attorneys for Plaintiffs MOTION FOR AN AWARD OF FEES IN CONNECTION WITH THE SETTLEMENT - 6