If you sold a home, and paid a commission to a real estate broker or agent, a class action lawsuit may affect your rights

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SEATTLE, Feb. 27, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- JND Legal Administration

A class action lawsuit called Moehrl et al. v. National Association of Realtors, et al., No. 1:19-cv-01610 ("Moehrl v. NAR" or "Moehrl") is pending in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (the "Court"). The lawsuit alleges the existence of an anticompetitive agreement that resulted in home sellers paying inflated commissions to real estate brokers or agents in violation of antitrust law. Defendants deny the allegations and the Court has not decided whether Defendants did anything wrong.

Who is included in the Litigation Damages Class?

Plaintiffs are a class of home sellers certified by the Court. To be part of the "Litigation Damages Class" in the ongoing Moehrl lawsuit, you need to have (1) sold a home between March 6, 2015 and December 31, 2020; (2) used a real estate agent or broker affiliated with a Corporate Defendant to sell the home; (3) paid a commission to your agent or broker; and (4) listed the home for sale on what is referred to as a "Covered Multiple Listing Service." ("Covered MLS")

Defendants include The National Association of Realtors ("NAR") and several large real estate brokerage firms referred to here as "Corporate Defendants." The Corporate Defendants are Keller Williams; RE/MAX; Anywhere Real Estate f/k/a Realogy (which is affiliated with brands including Better Homes and Gardens, Century 21, Coldwell Banker, Corcoran, ERA Real Estate, and Sotheby's) (collectively "Anywhere"); and HomeServices of America and certain of its subsidiaries (which are together affiliated with brands including Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices, BHHS, Ebby Halliday, Edina Realty, First Weber, Kentwood, Long & Foster, Lovejoy, Midwest Preferred, Preferred Carolinas, Real Living, RLRE, and Roy H. Long Realty) (collectively, "HomeServices").

The Covered MLSs and jurisdictions are:

• Bright MLS (Delaware, District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia)
• Carolina/Canopy MLS (North Carolina, South Carolina)
• Triangle MLS (North Carolina)
• Stellar MLS (Florida)
• Miami MLS (Florida)
• Florida Gulf Coast MLS (Florida)
• Realcomp II (Michigan)
• Metro MLS (Wisconsin)
• Northstar MLS (Minnesota, Wisconsin)
• Yes MLS/MLS Now (Ohio, West Virginia)
• Columbus Realtors MLS (Ohio)
• Wasatch Front MLS/Utah Real Estate (Utah)
• REcolorado/Metrolist (Colorado)
• Pikes Peak MLS (Colorado)
• GLVAR MLS (Nevada)
• SABOR (Texas)
• ACTRIS/ABOR (Texas)
• HAR MLS (Texas)
• NTREIS (Texas)
• ARMLS (Arizona)

Have there been any Settlements?

Plaintiffs have entered into proposed Nationwide Settlements for $208.5 million and other benefits with three of the Defendants—Anywhere, RE/MAX, and Keller Williams (the "Settling Defendants"). If finally approved, the settlements will resolve claims against Anywhere, RE/MAX, and Keller Williams raised in this lawsuit as well as in at least two other lawsuits: Burnett, et al. v. National Association of Realtors, et al., Case No. 19-CV-00332-SRB (Western District of Missouri); and Nosalek v. MLS Property Information Network, Inc. ("MLS PIN"), et al., Case No. 1:20-cv-12244-PBS (District of Massachusetts). The Moehrl v. NAR case will proceed in federal court in Illinois against any Defendants who do not settle. Additional settlements may be reached with other Defendants. See www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com for information about further developments in this litigation, including information about any additional settlements.

Who is included in the Settlement Class?

The Settlement Class is broader than the Moehrl Litigation Damages Class. It includes home sellers who are members of the Moehrl Litigation Damages Class, as well as many other home sellers. You may be eligible to benefit from the Nationwide Settlements, if you: (1) sold a home during the "Eligible Date Range"; (2) listed the home that was sold on a multiple listing service ("MLS") anywhere in the United States; and (3) paid a commission to any real estate brokerage in connection with the sale of the home. The Settlement Agreements include a Release of Claims. Notice regarding the Nationwide Settlements and the claims being released is being provided separately. Additional information, including the "Eligible Date Range" is available at: www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com.

What are your rights and options?

You may have rights under both the ongoing Moehrl lawsuit and the Nationwide Settlements.

Moehrl Lawsuit – Litigation Damages Class:
There is no money available now in the ongoing Moehrl lawsuit against the Non-Settling Defendants, and no guarantee there will be. However, your legal rights are affected, and you have a choice to make now.

Nationwide Settlements – Settlement Class:
Your legal rights are also affected under the proposed Settlements with RE/MAX, Anywhere, and Keller Williams, and you have a choice to make now.

To get a payment in the Settlements, you must submit a claim by May 9, 2025. For further information about the proposed Settlements and where to submit a claim, go to www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com.

Rights and Options:

• Do Nothing. (Stay in the Moehrl lawsuit. Await the outcome. Give up certain rights.)
• Ask to be Excluded from the Settlements and the Moehrl Litigation Damages Class.
• Ask to be Excluded from the Settlements – But Not the Moehrl Litigation Damages Class.
• Ask to be Excluded from the Moehrl Litigation Damages Class – But Not the Settlements.

To learn more about your rights, options, and benefits, go to
www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com/Moehrl (Moehrl lawsuit) and
www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com (Nationwide Settlements).

To exclude yourself (opt out) of the Moehrl Litigation Damages Class, you must send an "Exclusion Request" in the form of a letter sent by mail, including (a) your name and address, and (b) a statement that you want to be excluded from the Litigation Damages Class certified in Moehrl et al. v. National Association of Realtors, et al. You may also get an Exclusion Request form at www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com/Moehrl. To be accepted, your Exclusion Request letter must be postmarked by April 13, 2024, and addressed to:

Moehrl et al. v. The National Association of Realtors et al.
c/o JND Legal Administration – Exclusion Dpt.
PO Box 91486
Seattle, WA 98111

To object to or exclude yourself (opt-out) from one or both of the settlements with Settling Defendants, you must do so by April 13, 2024. The deadline to submit a claim for a payment in the Nationwide Settlements is May 9, 2025. To learn more about the Nationwide Settlements, how to file a claim, and rights you would be releasing, go to www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com.

The Trial.

As long as the Moehrl case isn't resolved by a settlement or otherwise, Plaintiffs will have to prove their claims at a trial to recover from any Defendants who do not have approved settlements. The Court appointed the law firms Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP, Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll PLLC, and Susman Godfrey L.L.P. to represent members of the Moehrl Litigation Classes as Class Counsel. You do not need to attend the trial. Class Counsel will present the case for Plaintiffs and the Litigation Classes, and lawyers for the Defendants will present on their behalf. You or your own lawyer are welcome to come at your own expense.

How do I get more information?

This notice is only a summary. To learn more, visit
www.RealEstateCommissionLitigation.com/Moehrl, call 888‑995-0207, email
[email protected], or write to Moehrl v. National Association of
Realtors, c/o JND Legal Administration, PO Box 91479, Seattle, WA 98111. 

SOURCE JND Legal Administration