U.S. District Judge Freda Wolfson. Photo: Carmen Natale/ALM

A federal judge in New Jersey approved more than $1.2 million in fees for plaintiffs lawyers following a settlement last year with Fiat Chrysler over faulty transmissions installed in thousands of Jeep and Chrysler vehicles in 2014 and 2015.

According to the opinion entered Tuesday by Judge Freda Wolfson of the U.S. District Court for New Jersey, the fees are to be divided between class counsel Howard Gutman with the Law Offices of Howard Gutman in Flanders, New Jersey, and Capstone Law in Los Angeles, which had 11 lawyers working on the case.

The class action settled in September, with Fiat Chrysler agreeing to provide cash payments of up to $2,000 or vouchers worth up to $4,000 toward a replacement vehicle to the purchasers of 2014 and 2015 Cherokees and 2015 Renegades, Chrysler 2000s and ProMaster vans equipped with the 9HP automatic transmission.

According to the original complaint, the subject vehicles were prone to a "host of symptoms[,] including difficulty in shifting, noisy shifting, harsh engagement of gears, sudden acceleration and deceleration, loss of power, premature transmission wear, and transmission failure."

In granting the unopposed fee award, Wolfson noted that the settlement does not involve a set pool of funds and that the fees could thus not be based on a percentage, but she found that they compared reasonably with other similar class settlements.

"Although the settlement provides some monetary benefit to the class members, the total amount paid to each class member will depend on the number of transmission related events suffered by the individual, and whether the individual elects to receive a trade-in voucher or a cash payment," Wolfson wrote.

"Furthermore, the settlement agreement provides qualifying class members with non-monetary benefits such as an extension of their vehicle warranties," she said.

The award includes $1,228,806 in fees and expenses, plus $5,000 for the class representatives Dolores and Albert Granillo.

"We appreciate Judge Wolfson's thoughtful analysis on attorneys' fees and incentive awards," said Capston partner Tarek Zohdy via email. "As this is the final order, we're pleased that the case has been successfully resolved, with the settlement delivering significant benefits to the class."

A Fiat Chrysler spokesman said he would try to get a response, but had no immediate reaction.