NEW YORK (Bloomberg) — Bank of America Corp., which acquired Countrywide Financial Corp., will pay $55 million to settle a class-action lawsuit by employees who accused the mortgage lender of misleading them about its financial health and causing the value of their retirement plan to drop.

The settlement is "fair, reasonable and adequate", lawyers for the workers said in an August 7 request for preliminary approval filed in federal court in Los Angeles. A hearing on the request is scheduled for August 31 before US District Judge John Walter.