Gibson Lawsuit Plaintiffs Can Notify MLSs on Data Duties

Plaintiffs in the Gibson home seller commission lawsuit have received authorization to notify all Multiple Listing Services (MLSs) that opted into the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) commission lawsuit settlement. This court-approved action aims to remind these MLSs of their specific responsibilities regarding the sharing of real estate listing and commission data as stipulated by the settlement agreement. The authorization was granted in late July by Judge Stephen Bough, who is overseeing both the Gibson suit and the related Sitzer/Burnett lawsuit. The plaintiffs had filed a motion requesting the court to enforce a settlement provision that requires MLSs participating in the settlement to permit the plaintiffs to collect their real estate listing and commission data. This motion was prompted by a refusal from Financial Business Systems (FBS), a third-party data provider that supports the MLS software platform Flexmls, to release the requested data. FBS has stated that it requires explicit permission from each individual MLS before it can hand over the data. The plaintiffs contend that FBS has not disclosed which specific MLSs are withholding this permission. To address this impasse and enforce the settlement's data-sharing clause, Judge Bough approved the plaintiffs' proposed plan to issue a formal notice to all MLSs that had opted into the settlement. This notice will serve as a reminder that their participation in the settlement already signifies their agreement to share this data. The court has established a seven-day period for any MLS to formally object to sharing its data. If an MLS chooses to object, both the plaintiffs and the objecting MLS will have the opportunity to present their arguments before Judge Bough, who will then make a judicial determination on whether the MLS is compelled to share the data. Conversely, if an MLS does not file an objection within this seven-day window, its silence will be interpreted as automatic written consent for FBS and other third-party data providers to release the data to the plaintiffs. For MLSs that do file an objection, Judge Bough has indicated that the court will independently resolve any disputes concerning the enforcement of the settlement as it pertains to each specific objecting MLS. The exact timeline for when the plaintiffs will commence sending out these notices remains undetermined.