After fact discovery was substantially completed, the Parties began discussing in earnest the possibility of settlement. After weeks of back and forth discussions between themselves, the Parties engaged in two full days of arm’s length and often spirited mediation sessions over the course of two weeks with the Mediator, Judge Wayne Anderson (Ret.), in Chicago, Illinois. Judge Andersen is a former federal judge on the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois.  

In the court settlement agreement it stated “although both sides believe their respective positions in the action are meritorious, they have concluded that, due to the uncertainties and expense of protracted litigation, it is in the best interest of Plaintiffs, the putative settlement Class, and Southwest to resolve this action on the terms provided in the proposed Settlement Agreement”.  

Each Entitled Class Member1 shall receive one Replacement Voucher for each and every Eligible Drink Voucher an Entitled Class Member received prior to August 1, 2010, in connection with the purchase of a Business Select ticket or otherwise, that was not redeemed by the Entitled Class Member. There is no limit or cap on the number of Replacement Vouchers per Entitled Class Member. Thus, the Settlement allows Entitled Class to recover one hundred cents on the dollar, a complete and total recovery. And, the Eligible Vouchers are freely transferable. To become an Entitled Class Member, and, thus, to receive one or more Replacement Vouchers, the Class Member must submit a claim that is timely, and valid as determined by the Settlement Administrator.  

During that roughly three-year time period, Southwest sold 11.6 million Business Select tickets and, thus, 11.6 million Vouchers. Id. Although Southwest failed to track exactly how many of those Vouchers were redeemed, Southwest’s empirical and statistical modeling suggests that approximately half, or 50%, of the Vouchers were redeemed. Thus, as of August 1, 2010, approximately 5.8 million Vouchers had not been redeemed by Class Members. Each Voucher is valued at $5 the price of a premium or alcoholic beverage on a Southwest flight without a Voucher which means that the Settlement provides for not less than $29 million worth of direct benefits to the Settlement Class. 

Despite their best efforts, to date, the Parties have been unable to reach agreement on Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses. Plaintiffs will submit a motion supporting their request for attorneys’ fees pursuant to the Court’s Preliminary Approval Order. Importantly, the Attorneys’ Fees and Expenses will not be paid out of the Settlement Class benefits achieved by the Settlement, and will not dilute or reduce the Class benefits in any way. Rather, Fees and Expenses will be paid directly by Southwest, in addition to and separate from the Settlement Class benefits.