B-K Lighting Stock Plan Settlement Gets First Court Approval

A former B-K Lighting Inc. worker received initial approval for a class-wide settlement valued at $2.25 million in a lawsuit challenging a transaction that allegedly harmed the company’s employee stock ownership plan.

The agreement, which is expected to benefit about 200 people covered by the lighting fixture manufacturer’s stock plan, includes a $1.5 million cash payment earmarked for plan participants.

• It also reduces B-K’s debt by $1 million, which is expected to increase the ESOP’s value by about $750,000, according to court filings
• The deal represents about 45% of the case’s estimated damages, Magistrate Judge Stanley A. Boone of the ...