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Saunders v. Hankerson
Order and final judgment by Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, US District Court for the District of Columbia
November 21, 2005

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA

NATHAN A. SAUNDERS, Plaintiff, v. ESTER HANKERSON, et al., Defendants

Civ. Action No. 02-2536 (EGS)

ORDER AND FINAL JUDGMENT

THIS CAUSE having come before the Court on November 14, 2005, upon Motion for an Order and Final Judgment pursuant to Fed. R. Civ. P. 23.1, and with respect to certain matters relating to resolution of the above-captioned Action (the "Resolution") in accordance with the Agreement dated August 26, 2005, the Supplemental Agreement dated August 25, 2005, and the Motion for Preliminary Approval of the Proposed Resolution dated October 5, 2005 (collectively, "the Resolution Documents"); and

The Court having read and considered the Resolution Documents, heard arguments of counsel in favor of granting preliminary approval of the Resolution by Order dated October 5, 2005 and the Court having received no objections, and

All parties having consented to the entry of this Order, it is

ORDERED, ADJUDGED AND DECREED THAT:

JURISDICTION

1. This Court has jurisdiction over the subject matter of the above-captioned Action, and over all parties to the Action.

NO ADMISSION OR EVIDENCE OF LIABILITY

2. The Court hereby decrees that neither the Resolution Documents, nor this Final Judgment nor the fact of the Resolution, is an admission or evidence of any violation of any statute or law or of any liability or wrongdoing by the parties to the above-captioned Action or of the truth of any of the claims or allegations alleged in the above-captioned Action. This Final Judgment is not a finding of the validity or invalidity of any claims in the above-captioned Action or of any wrongdoing or lack thereof by the defendants named in this lawsuit. The Resolution Documents, and any and all negotiations, documents, and discussions associated with them, shall not be deemed or construed to be an admission or evidence of any violation of any statute or law or of any liability or wrongdoing by any of the parties to the above-captioned Action, or of any alleged defense, or of the absence of any wrongdoing or limitations of damage or injury, and evidence thereof shall not be discoverable or used directly or indirectly, in any way, by any person, in any other proceeding.

EFFECT ON OTHER LAWSUITS

3. As part of the Resolution, the Washington Teachers' Union ("WTU") and the American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO ("AFT") agreed that they, under the lawsuit filed by the AFT, will jointly pursue the recovery of money from the defendants named in American Federation of Teachers, AFL-CIO, et al. v. Barbara Bullock, et al., No. 1:03 CV 0079 (EGS) ("AFT v. Bullock"). Any and all of the money that the AFT and the WTU recover from the defendants named in AFT v. Bullock will be allocated entirely to the WTU treasury.

4. Accordingly, neither the Resolution Documents nor this Order and Final Judgment shall affect or inhibit in any way the WTU's ability to pursue claims or obtain a recovery against the defendants named in AFT v. Bullock.

FINALIZATION OF PRELIMINARY FINDINGS

5. The Court makes final and unconditional the conditional and preliminary findings that the Court made regarding the Notice and the Resolution terms in the Order Regarding Preliminary Approval of the Proposed Resolution ("Preliminary Order") dated October 5, 2005.

NOTICE

6. The Court finds that the Notice of the Resolution was given in accordance with the Preliminary Order and that such notice was reasonable and constituted the most practicable notice under the circumstances, constituted valid, due and sufficient notice to all members of the WTU, and complied fully with the requirements of due process, federal law, the Constitution of the United States, and any other applicable law.

APPROVAL OF THE RESOLUTION

7. This Court hereby approves the Resolution set forth in the Resolution Documents and finds, in accordance with Fed. R. Civ. P. 23.1, that said Resolution is, in all respects, fair, reasonable, adequate and in the best interests of the members of the WTU and directs the consummation and implementation of the Resolution in accordance with the terms and provisions of the Resolution Documents.

8. This Court further finds that the Resolution has been entered into and made in good faith, and that Plaintiff and Plaintiff's counsel have fairly and adequately represented the interests of the members of the WTU in connection with the above-captioned Action and the Resolution.

DISMISSAL WITH PREJUDICE

9. The Court hereby dismisses with prejudice the above-captioned Action filed herein against the defendants named in this lawsuit only without costs to any party except as provided herein in the Resolution Documents. The dismissal shall not inhibit in any way the WTU's ability to pursue claims or obtain a recovery against the defendants named in AFT v. Bullock, even if they are also named as defendants in the above-captioned Action.

CONTINUING JURISDICTION

12. Without affecting the finality of this Judgment in any way, this Court retains continuing jurisdiction: (a) over the implementation, administration, and consummation of the Settlement; (b) over the Action until the Final Judgment contemplated hereby has become effective and each and every act agreed to be performed by the parties to the Resolution Documents shall have been performed pursuant to the Resolution Documents; and (c) over all parties to the Action and all parties to the Resolution Documents for the purpose of taking such other actions as may be necessary to conclude and administer this Resolution and to implement and enforce the Resolution Documents.

TERMINATION OF THE RESOLUTION

13. In the event that the Defendants fail to abide by the terms of the Resolution Documents, then this Final Judgment shall be rendered null and void and be vacated and the Resolution Documents and all Orders entered and Releases delivered in connection therewith by this Court shall be rendered null and void.

ENTRY OF FINAL JUDGMENT

14. The Court finds that no just reason exists for delay in entering Final Judgment in accordance with the Resolution Documents. Accordingly, the Clerk of the Court is hereby directed to enter this Final Judgment forthwith.

Dated: November 21, 2005
Emmet G. Sullivan
United States District Judge

Saunders v. Hankerson Order and final judgment by Judge Emmet G. Sullivan, US District Court for the District of Columbia November 21, 2005