LOS ANGELES - (Business Wire) Insurers for the Sterling Family Trust agreed to settle a lawsuit filed against it by fair housing attorneys alleging claims of housing discrimination, said Robert Platt, lead counsel for the Trust and a partner at Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, in Los Angeles. “After three years of litigation, the fair housing attorneys could not prove a single violation of the Fair Housing Act,” Platt said. “My clients vehemently and unequivocally deny that anyone was discriminated against. Nevertheless, the insurance companies for the Trust decided to settle the case because the cost of continued litigation far exceeded the cost of settlement.”
For decades, Platt said, the Trust has had a zero tolerance policy prohibiting all forms of housing discrimination, and the Trust has conducted extensive fair housing training.
“The expert testimony from the case also conclusively confirmed that the Trust did not discriminate against anyone,” added Platt. “The fair housing attorneys could not identify a single individual who was wrongfully denied the right to rent an apartment from the Trust. In fact, not a single individual has ever been subjected to any discrimination by my clients.”
Faced with these facts, the fair housing attorneys agreed to settle the case without a determination of liability. As part of the settlement, the Trust expressly denied any liability and agreed to allow the insurance companies to fund the settlement.
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Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, provides legal and consulting services to a global client base from offices in Los Angeles, Orange County, Palo Alto, San Francisco, and Sacramento, California; New York City and Albany, New York; and Washington, D.C. Manatt includes Manatt Health Solutions, a healthcare policy and strategic business advisory group, and ManattJones Global Strategies, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary that develops and implements strategies to expand client businesses and facilitate their effective competition in global markets. For more information, visit www.manatt.com, www.manatthealthsolutions.com, and www.manattjones.com.
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP
Lawrence Martinez, 310-231-5443
