BNBuilders ESOP ERISA Class Action Settlement

Only vested BNBuilders ESOP members qualify. This $5,000,000 fund resolves Schlueter v. BNBuilders, Inc., No. 2:25-cv-01713-JHC (W.D. Wash.), and it is a closed class of roughly 500 people that you cannot sign up for. It covers only BNBuilders ESOP participants who vested under the terms of the Plan while holding stock between December 23, 2021 and December 31, 2025, plus their beneficiaries — having worked at BNBuilders in that window is not enough. Members are identified from ESOP records and paid automatically by check; there is no claim form and no proof to submit. November 25, 2026 is not a claim deadline — it is the objection deadline and the cutoff for an optional rollover election that changes only how you are paid. Miss it and you still get paid. You cannot opt out: this is a mandatory class. The $5 million is a gross figure — fees of up to $1,250,000, expenses of up to $600,000, a $15,000 service award, plus uncapped administration and independent fiduciary fees come out of it first. Fairness hearing: December 16, 2026.

Do I Qualify?

You may be eligible if:

• You cannot sign up for this settlement — the Class is closed and members are identified from the ESOP's own records
• You were a participant in the BNBuilders, Inc. Employee Stock Ownership Plan, or the beneficiary of one
• You VESTED under the terms of the Plan while holding stock at some point between December 23, 2021 and December 31, 2025 — simply having been a BNBuilders employee during that window does not qualify you
• The complaint says the ESOP had roughly 508 participants at the end of 2023, so this is a small closed group
• You do not need to still work for BNBuilders — former employees who vested are included
• You are NOT eligible if you are a Defendant or an immediate family member, a fiduciary of the Plan, an officer or director of BNBuilders or of any entity a Defendant controls, or a legal representative, successor or assign of anyone excluded
• You cannot opt out — the Court preliminarily approved this as a mandatory, non-opt-out class
• If you never received a mailed notice and were never a vested ESOP participant, there is nothing here for you to claim

No claim form, and no proof to submit — nothing to document. Atticus Administration identifies Class Members from the ESOP recordkeeper's data and mails a check automatically if the Court grants final approval. November 25, 2026 is not a claim-filing deadline — it is the objection deadline and the cutoff for the one optional form in this case, a direct rollover election. Submitting it sends your same pro rata share into an IRA, 401(a)/401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) and avoids tax withholding; skipping it means a check with applicable tax withheld. The rollover form requires your date of birth, Social Security number and a signed W-9 certification. You cannot opt out of this settlement.

What Happened?

On December 23, 2021, BNBuilders' owners, led by Brad Bastian, sold 100% of the Seattle-based commercial general contractor to a newly created employee stock ownership plan for $206,508,990 — $29.13 a share — financed entirely with seller debt on a 40-year term. The plan's own later filings valued the shares at $3.20 at the end of 2021 and $10.30 at the end of 2023.

Plaintiff Eric Schlueter, a former employee and vested ESOP participant, alleged the plan overpaid: that the valuation failed to adequately discount for the sellers keeping control of the board, for rising interest rates and inflation, for the debt load and for the stock's lack of marketability, and that trustee GreatBanc Trust Company and the BNBuilders board breached their ERISA fiduciary duties in approving and monitoring the deal. Defendants deny wrongdoing, argue the sale was for fair market value, and the Court's order makes no determination on the merits.

The case was filed in September 2025. After a stay for mediation the parties reported a settlement on August 10, 2026 and Judge John H. Chun granted preliminary approval of a $5 million settlement on September 2, 2026.

The $5 million is gross. Class Counsel at Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll may seek up to one-quarter of the fund (up to $1,250,000) in fees plus up to $600,000 in litigation expenses, and the Class Representative seeks a $15,000 service award. The $600,000 figure caps litigation expenses only — administration costs and independent fiduciary fees are also deducted and carry no stated cap. The remainder is split pro rata by total vested shares. No per-person estimate has been published.

There is no claim form. Atticus Administration pays Class Members automatically by check if the Court grants final approval. A qualified Independent Fiduciary must also review the settlement on the Plan's behalf and file a written report. The fairness hearing is December 16, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific in Seattle; payment timing depends on final approval and on whether anyone appeals.

Unrelated: a separate federal case against the same company, Gonzalez v. BNBuilders, Inc., No. 3:26-cv-05402 (S.D. Cal.), was docketed in September 2026. It is a different matter and is not covered by this settlement.

How to File Your Claim

1. NO ACTION NEEDED — there is no claim form and no claim deadline
2. Atticus Administration calculates each share from ESOP records and mails a check automatically if the Court grants final approval
3. November 25, 2026 is NOT a claim deadline — it is the objection deadline and the deadline for the optional direct rollover election
4. Optional rollover: submit the rollover form online at BNBuildersESOPsettlement.com or by mail postmarked by November 25, 2026 to send your payment into an IRA, 401(a)/401(k), 403(b) or governmental 457(b) instead of a check — it requires your date of birth, Social Security number and a signed W-9 certification
5. Do nothing and you receive a check with applicable tax withholding
6. Objections must be filed with the Court AND sent to BNBuilders ESOP Settlement c/o Atticus Administration, PO Box 64053, Saint Paul, MN 55164 or BNBuildersESOPSettlement@AtticusAdmin.com by November 25, 2026
7. You cannot opt out — this is a mandatory non-opt-out class
8. Fairness hearing is December 16, 2026 at 9:00 a.m. Pacific before Judge John H. Chun in Seattle
9. Administrator: 1-800-212-8850
10. Visit the official claim form: https://www.bnbuildersesopsettlement.com/

How Much Will I Actually Get?

$5,000,000 total Settlement Fund — and that is the gross figure, not what reaches the Class. Deducted first: Class Counsel's fee request of up to one-quarter of the fund (up to $1,250,000), litigation expenses of up to $600,000, and a $15,000 service award for the Class Representative. Note that the $600,000 cap covers litigation expenses only — it is not a cap on total deductions, and settlement administration costs plus independent fiduciary fees also come out of the fund with no stated cap. Whatever remains is split pro rata by each Class Member's total vested shares. No per-person estimate has been published and this page does not guess at one. Payment arrives as a check with applicable tax withholding unless a rollover is elected by November 25, 2026 — the rollover changes only how you are paid, not whether or how much.

Last reviewed: September 27, 2026 | Information verified from court records and official settlement documents.

Frequently Asked Questions