A judge has awarded Weil, Gotshal & Manges $16 million in class counsel fees and signed off on a $58.5 million settlement it negotiated with the performance rights organization SESAC LLC.

On Feb. 18, Southern District Judge Paul Engelmayer (See Profile) granted final approval to the settlement, which resolves claims that Weil brought on behalf of a group of network television affiliates.

The deal capped more than five years of litigation over claims that SESAC violated federal antitrust law through its practice of issuing blanket copyright licenses to local stations.