In August last year, Apple settled a class-action suit filed by developers. It agreed to pay $100 million and make changes to the App Store. On June 7, judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers presiding on the case announced that she plans to approve the settlement. However, she highlighted that the fees attorneys plan to charge are rather steep.

Judge Rogers, who also issued the verdict on the Apple vs. Epic Games case, says she wants to see the “math” behind the $27 million requested as an attorney fee and how the deductions would reduce the claims made by affected small developers. Specifically, she wanted “see the numbers” to know how much each member of the class action would lose to fees if she awards $25 million in attorney fees instead of the claimed $27 million.

The judge notes that for some of the claimants, the difference in the attorney fee could make a significant difference. Based on their history of participating in App Store distribution, developers are eligible for payouts ranging between $250 and $30,000.

The settlement is the result of a 2019 suit by developers alleging that the company is using the App Store monopoly to levy the hefty 30 percent Apple Tax on purchases made through the app distribution platform. The company started an App Store Small Businesses Program which drops the commission down to 15 percent for smaller businesses and app developers.

Apple also started a Small Developer Assistance Fund to disburse the settlement amount to the claimants. Developers were issued a May 20 deadline to submit their claims and the iPhone maker issued several reminders as well. An estimated 67,000 developers are eligible for a payout. Those who earned less than $100 from the App Store will receive $250 from the Assistance Fund while developers who earned more than $1 million will be eligible for greater payments. Note that the minimum payment from the fund is subject to change depending on the total number of claimants.

The company says it is committed to disbursing funds soon to developers who submitted “timely and valid” claims. While the decision inches closer to approval in court, the Cupertino-based company promised to maintain the App Store Small Business Program and ensure no changes are made to its App Store policies for three years.