In a court filing Friday, lawyers representing Massachusetts-based MLS PIN and plaintiffs representing homesellers who accused the the MLS (and big brokerages) of inflating commissions, asked Judge Patti Saris to give a final stamp of approval to their deal, which saw multiple iterations and spent 18 months in limbo after the Department of Justice intervened in the case.
“If approved, the proposed Settlement will resolve this antitrust case against MLS PIN at least as favorably as a litigated judgment given MLS PIN’s small size and the expected resolution of Plaintiffs’ claims against the other Defendants based on nationwide settlements,” the parties wrote.
One of the first commission lawsuits filed back in 2020—long before the Burnett verdict rocked the industry in 2023—MLS PIN and plaintiffs were actually the first to settle, just over two years ago. A final approval would represent a milestone in the commission lawsuit saga, and also cement the principles and precedence established in other deals.
Saris appeared ready to give her approval to the original deal—which would have allowed offers of compensation to take place on the MLS—the Department of Justice (DOJ) jumped in to push back on specific terms and stipulations.
Over the next two years, as the National Association of Realtors® (NAR) and other big brokerages struck deals in the nationwide cases, the litigation languished, going through multiple revisions and retracted negotiations with federal lawmakers.
After the inauguration of President Donald Trump in January, those negotiations seemed to suddenly make progress, with parties eventually agreeing to align the deal with NAR’s agreement, and the DOJ removing its objections (while reserving the right to come back with separate enforcement action).
Now, MLS PIN will seek to put the litigation in the rear view—though notably, part of the deal requires the MLS to cooperate with plaintiffs in a limited fashion if the NAR settlement is overturned on appeal.
MLS PIN did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Attorneys representing the plaintiffs—a separate firm from those who led the national commission lawsuits—also requested $1.3 million in fees, as well as $200,000 for expenses. This year, the total amount paid was raised from $3 million to $3.95 million, based on how much MLS PIN would have paid had it opted into the NAR deal.
Similar to the national settlements, this deal has received pushback from class members, with one letter filed this week with the court by two recent homesellers noting they will likely receive around $30, even though the (allegedly) inflated buyer agent commission they paid was over $15,000.
