Massachusetts Court Approves $300 Million Settlement Agreement in State Street Bank “Indirect Foreign Exchange” Class Action

Keller Rohrback L.L.P. is pleased to announce that Honorable Mark L. Wolf of the United States District Court of Massachusetts has approved a $300 million settlement between plaintiffs and State Street Bank and Trust Company (SBBT).  Plaintiffs alleged that SBBT’s custodial clients, including ERISA plans, lost money due to SSBT’s unfair, deceptive and improper practice of charging excessive rates and spreads in connection with certain foreign exchange transactions known as “Indirect Foreign Exchange Transactions” from January 2, 1998 through December 31, 2009.

Keller Rohrback L.L.P. managing partner Lynn Lincoln Sarko played a major role in negotiating this landmark settlement as counsel for ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974) plaintiffs, who stand to recover $60 million out of the $300 million settlement. When asked for a statement Mr. Sarko said, “This settlement took extraordinary patience and perseverance. Although the negotiations were challenging, we had the guidance of an experienced federal Judge, a talented mediator, and sophisticated attorneys on both sides of the table. At the end of the day, we achieved a settlement that provides fair compensation to the injured class members. This fine result is a testimony to the hard work and good faith of all the parties.”

The Settlement Administrator will begin distributing settlement proceeds as soon as the Court’s Orders allow it to do so. You can read more about this settlement here.

Keller Rohrback L.L.P., with offices in Seattle, Phoenix, New York, and Santa Barbara, serves as lead and co-lead counsel in class actions throughout the country. Our Complex Litigation Group is proud to offer its expertise to clients nationwide, and our trial lawyers have obtained judgments and settlements on behalf of clients in excess of eighteen billion dollars.