Common use of Settlement Considerations Clause in Contracts

Settlement Considerations. 1. Representative Plaintiffs and Class Counsel stand by the claims asserted in this Action, including their claims that ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ breached the implied warranty of habitability codified at Section 235-b of New York’s Real Property Law and the lease agreements between ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ and tenants during the Class Period in all the respects alleged in the Complaint. Notwithstanding that position, without conceding any defect or lack of merit in those claims, and based upon their evaluation of the facts and law, the Representative Plaintiffs and Class Counsel have agreed to settle the Action and release the ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ Releasees and Related Party Releasees pursuant to the terms of this Settlement Agreement after considering, among other things, that: (a) Class Members have already received substantial benefits during the pendency of this lawsuit, and would receive substantial additional benefits under the terms of this Settlement Agreement, if approved. These benefits, in the aggregate, may be greater than the benefits that may have been obtained had the matter continued through trial; (b) Litigation of complex actions such as this Action involves inherent risks, including risks of delay; (c) Prior rulings in cases asserting claims similar to those asserted in the Action support the reasonableness of the Settlement Agreement; (d) The outcome of any dispositive motion is uncertain; (e) The outcome of a motion for class certification is uncertain; (f) Consummating this Settlement Agreement promptly would provide effective and significant relief to Class Members; and (g) Based on, among other things, the investigation, disclosure, and legal proceedings described above in Section I.D, the Representative Plaintiffs and Class Counsel believe that the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and in the best interests of all Class Members; and (h) The Contractual Rent Increase Limitation, defined below, is intended to protect Current Tenants, both those subject to QRS and those subject to market rate increases, by placing an outer limit on rent increases for a period of two years. This protection will serve as a two- year backstop for QRS tenants in the event the QRS program expires on June 30, 2020, without a replacement program in place. It will also protect non-QRS tenants for a period of two years, as described in Section II.E.1 below. In the absence of this Settlement Agreement, ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ would not undertake this contractual obligation. 2. ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ denies that it has breached the implied warranty of habitability codified at Section 235-b of New York’s Real Property Law or the lease agreements between ▇▇▇▇▇▇ ▇▇▇▇▇▇ and tenants at any time during the Class Period in any of the respects alleged by the Complaint; denies that it is otherwise liable to members of the Class in any respect; asserts that, in the absence of a settlement, this Action could not properly be maintained as a class action under New York law; and states it is entering this Settlement Agreement solely to eliminate the uncertainties, burden, and expense of further litigation. 3. Except as provided below, neither this Settlement Agreement, nor the Settlement, nor any of their terms, nor any press release or other statement or report by the Parties or by others concerning this Settlement Agreement, the Settlement, or their terms, shall constitute an admission or finding of wrongful conduct, acts, or omissions on the part of any Releasee shall be admissible in any proceeding (other than a proceeding to enforce the terms of the Settlement Agreement) for any purpose whatsoever.