Lawyers seek $754 million in new Blue Cross antitrust settlement

By David Thomas

Feb 3 (Reuters) - Plaintiffs' lawyers behind a pending $2.8 billion class action antitrust settlement with Blue Cross Blue Shield on Sunday asked a federal judge in Alabama for more than $754 million in legal fees and expenses for their work on the case, which has lasted for more than a decade.

The lawyers, led by Joe Whatley and Edith Kallas of Whatley Kallas, have requested $657.1 million — or 23.47% of the $2.8 billion settlement fund — in legal fees, as well as at least $97 million in expenses.

Whatley and Kallas noted in a statement that 23.47% is the same percentage a different group of plaintiffs, led by Boies Schiller Flexner and Hauser LLP, received for their work in securing a similar settlement from Blue Cross worth $2.7 billion in 2020.

"Provider Counsel have litigated against the Blues for more than 12 years and spent approximately $100 million in expert and other out of pocket expenses," Whatley and Kallas said in a statement.

The plaintiffs' lawyers said in their fee request to U.S. District Judge R. David Proctor they have billed more than 373,000 hours in the case. The $657.1 million fee request amounts to about $1,760 an hour.

A spokesperson for Blue Cross did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The pending settlement between Blue Cross and the plaintiffs allows them to request up to 25% of the $2.8 billion for their legal fees, not including expenses.

The pending settlement would resolve claims that Blue Cross and its affiliates divided the country into exclusive areas where they did not compete with each other. The lawsuit said the alleged conspiracy increased the cost of insurance and drove down reimbursements. The insurer denied wrongdoing.

Blue Cross also faced claims that it overcharged commercial and individual subscribers. Those claims were resolved with a $2.7 billion settlement that was upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court last year, and included a $667 million fee and expense award to a group of law firms led by Boies Schiller and Hausfeld.