REMAX announced Wednesday that it has agreed to settle the high-profile Batton commission lawsuit, making it the second company to reach a resolution in the case after Keller Williams.
REMAX announced the settlement in a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The filing states that the company has agreed to pay $8.5 million. The filing further notes that the settlement “resolves all remaining claims against REMAX in the lawsuit,” though settling is not “an admission or concession of liability, or of the validity of any claim, defense, or point of fact or law on the part of any party.”
“REMAX continues to deny the material allegations of the complaints in the lawsuit,” the filing adds.
Inman has reached out to REMAX for comment and will update this story with any statement the company provides.
Like other recent litigation, the Batton case alleges that the National Association of Realtors and a variety of major franchisors participated in a “decades-long, nationwide antitrust conspiracy” that resulted in homebuyers paying “billions in overcharges.” In the past, Batton struggled to move through the court system.
Moreover, unlike the most famous commission lawsuits such as Sitzer | Burnett and Moehrl that were initiated by homesellers, Batton began as a homebuyer lawsuit. As a result the case was not part of the wave of real estate industry settlements that made headlines beginning in 2023 and continuing through 2024.
Keller Williams reached its own settlement in the Batton lawsuit in February. However, in Keller Williams’ case, the company agreed to pay $20 million. At the time, the company said it was “the first defendant to resolve this litigation with the goal of eliminating uncertainty for our franchisees and agents.”
Keller Williams and REMAX both previously settled homeseller suits as well. Keller Williams announced it’s homeseller settlement in 2024, revealing that it would pay $70 million. REMAX settled for $55 million in 2023.
