On March 8, 2005, U.S. District Court Judge Saundra Armstrong of the Northern District of California approved a class action settlement this week between consumers, cosmetic manufacturers, and department stores that would provide class members with $175 million worth of cosmetics after previously rejecting the unusual “first-come, first-served” giveaway proposal in January. She also awarded the plaintiffs’ attorneys $24 million in fees, the full amount that they requested with no questions asked, despite her previous position that an award should only be made after the giveaway program has been completed to assess its effectiveness, and thereby enable the court to determine what fee amount would be reasonable. An appeal to the Ninth Circuit is expected.