VW Owners’ Attorney Can’t Seek Fees Outside Diesel Settlement

Volkswagen AG won’t have to pay an attorney fees and costs for work he did for diesel car owners before they accepted the company’s settlement, a federal court said.

The deal released all claims of class members and their attorneys for fees or costs outside the settlement agreement, Judge Charles R. Breyer wrote for the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California May 6.

“The release of attorneys’ lien claims against VW was essential to the settlement’s success,” the court said. Without it, VW wouldn’t have been able to disburse settlement funds directly to consumers, which might have ...