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Welcome to www.cbrichardellislawsuit.com. On October 4, 2007, Judge Andersen of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois certified a settlement class and granted preliminary approval to a settlement reached in Amy Wiginton, et al. v. CB Richard Ellis, Inc., No. 02 CV 6832 (N.D. III). Settlement Class Members may be eligible to recover up to $150,000 in money damages through this Settlement. To find out more about the Settlement, click here.

The following is a joint publicity statement issued by the Parties to the Litigation.
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JOINT PUBLICITY STATEMENT

Class Counsel and CB Richard Ellis Group, Inc. announce that they have reached a settlement in the lawsuit Amy Wiginton, et al. v. CB Richard Ellis, Inc., No. 02 CV 6832, in which five former female employees sought to certify a nationwide class of current and former female employees alleging sexual harassment. On October 4, 2007, the Honorable Judge Wayne Andersen of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division granted preliminary approval to the settlement agreement prior to ruling on whether to certify the Class. At the parties’ request, Judge Andersen certified a Settlement Class comprised of all current and former female employees of the company from January 1, 1999 to October 4, 2007.

The court approved a “process-based” settlement under which individuals from the class are invited to submit claims to an independent and neutral Special Master. Claimants who can demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Special Master that they were subjected to unlawful harassment will be entitled to monetary awards. Claims are subject to certain monetary caps depending on a claimant’s elections regarding the extent of the process in which they wish to participate and the level of confidentiality their claim will be afforded. The final payout by the company will be based on the number of submitted claims and the awards made by the Special Master depending on the merits of each claim. Specifically, the settlement consists of the following elements:
  • Payments to individual claimants based on results of the claims process where there is a finding of unlawful sexual harassment;
  • Service payments to each of the five class representatives for the time and effort they contributed to the prosecution of the litigation;
  • A charitable contribution to the Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Network for the purpose of establishing scholarships to promote the entry or advancement of women in the real estate services industry; and
  • Attorneys’ fees and costs to the Plaintiffs’ counsel.
Additionally, under the terms of the settlement agreement, the company agreed to several human resources measures. These activities include amending or tightening existing harassment policies, implementing enhanced training for all employees, increasing supervisor accountability to address sexually inappropriate conduct in the workplace, enhancing record-keeping practices, and conducting two annual reviews of settlement compliance by a court appointed monitor.

As part of the settlement agreement, CB Richard Ellis admitted no wrongdoing in the matter. The company determined that settling the case rather than facing the continued cost and disruption of fighting a potential class action was in the best interest of the company and its shareholders, and would allow CB Richard Ellis to move forward with its continued commitment to a workplace free of harassment. Class Counsel and the Plaintiffs determined that the agreement is in the best interests of current and former female employees of the company, because it affords class members the opportunity to submit claims for monetary awards and provides for the implementation of polices and practices that will help maintain a work environment that is safe and free from harassment.

Plaintiffs and the Class are represented by Elizabeth A. Fegan of Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP and Kenneth A. Wexler of Wexler Toriseva Wallace LLP, and CB Richard Ellis is represented by Brenda H. Feis of Seyfarth Shaw LLP.

QUESTIONS

If you have questions this website cannot answer, please contact the
Claims Administrator or Lead Class Counsel:

Claims Administrator:
Lead Class Counsel:
Wiginton, et al. v. CB Richard Ellis, Inc.
Claims Administrator
c/o Rust Consulting, Inc.
P.O. Box 9388
Minneapolis, MN 55440-9388

(888) 764-8860

Kenneth A. Wexler
(kaw@wtwlaw.com)
Jennifer Fountain Connolly
(jfc@wtwlaw.com)
Amber M. Nesbitt
(amn@wtwlaw.com)

Wexler Toriseva Wallace LLP
55 West Monroe St., Ste. 3300
Chicago, IL 60603
312-346-2222
312-346-0022 (fax)

Also available by email at:
CBRESettlement@wtwlaw.com

 Elizabeth A. Fegan
(beth@hbsslaw.com)

Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP
820 North Blvd., Suite B
Oak Park, Illinois 60301
708-776-5604
708-776-5601 (fax)