In a significant development for corporate governance and community reinvestment, the In re: Wells Fargo & Company Hiring Practices Derivative Litigation has reached a successful conclusion, marking a transformative moment for both the banking giant and the communities it serves.
The litigation team included counsel from Stranch, Jennings & Garvey, PLLC, including members Lesley Weaver and Anne Davis, as well as attorney Joshua Samra.
On May 5, 2026, the United States District Court for the Northern District of California, presided over by Trina L. Thompson, formally reviewed the settlement, which was finalized shortly thereafter. The settlement, which was granted final approval on May 15, 2026, centers on an inventive $100 million borrower assistance fund.
This program is designed to provide critical support for down payments and closing costs to low- and moderate-income borrowers in specific census tracts, aiming to rebuild trust and expand homeownership opportunities in communities that had historically been underserved.
Judicial Recognition of "Inventive" Counsel
During the settlement hearing, Judge Thompson praised the legal teams, specifically highlighting the creativity involved in structuring a resolution that provides tangible, long-term benefits to both the corporation and the public.
"I applaud each of you in your creativity and the historical moment you have just created, and I am floored by the work that was put into this case …" Judge Thompson remarked from the bench. "This is enormous. And I think that it will be a marriage of a community and a corporation and vice versa. I think this is a win-win for everybody, so thank you."
For the legal team at Stranch Jennings & Garvey, PLLC (SJ&G), the acknowledgment was the culmination of an arduous process that prioritized meaningful corporate reform over standard litigation outcomes.
"It was never our objective to simply reach a settlement; we wanted to craft a mechanism for genuine change,” Weaver said. “Hearing the court recognize the creativity and the 'win-win' nature of this resolution is incredibly validating. We hope this program serves as a roadmap for how corporations can proactively engage with and invest in the communities they serve, turning a contentious dispute into a constructive partnership."
Addressing Systemic Shortcomings
The litigation (Case No. 3:22-cv-05173-TLT) was born from the fallout of the 2022 revelations that shook the financial industry. Reports emerged alleging that Wells Fargo had conducted "sham" job interviews with minority candidates to create the appearance of diversity, meeting internal hiring quotas for roles that had often already been filled.
These allegations, coupled with separate concerns regarding significant disparities in mortgage lending — where data indicated the bank approved fewer than half of refinancing applications for Black homeowners in 2020 — painted a picture of systemic bias.
Investors and plaintiffs argued that these practices were not merely isolated incidents, but evidence that the bank's leadership had breached its fiduciary duties by failing to monitor and address widespread discriminatory behavior. The lawsuit sought to hold the board and executives accountable for what appeared to be a profound gap between the bank's public diversity commitments and its internal operational reality.