A group of plaintiffs’ lawyers are in a Manhattan federal courtroom today asking a judge to approve a settlement in a class action lawsuit that will allow them to reap $1.3 million in fees compared to $5 to $35 each for the class members, The New York Times reports.

The class action was filed against video game maker Take-Two Interactive, which sold its popular “Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas” game with hidden sex scenes included. The offensive scenes were un-viewable by ordinary players – they had been edited out of the game and could only be seen by using special software. But that didn’t stop the trial lawyers from rushing to court on behalf unwary gamers who purchased the prurient product.

The lawyers, no doubt, were counting on a lucrative payday. There was one little glitch, however. Even though millions of people bought the game, only 2,676 actually filed a claim. Take-Two Interactive estimates it will cost about $30,000 to dispose of these claims, compared to $1.3 million to settle the lawyers’ bills – a ratio of 43:1, our friends at The Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog helpfully point out.

Theodore Frank, director of the Legal Center for the Public Interest at the American Enterprise Institute who also contributes to Overlawyered.com, says of the settlement:

“There are two possibilities. Possibility one is they have a meritorious lawsuit and they’re selling out the class for attorneys’ fees. The other possibility is that, and frankly I think this is the more likely possibility, they brought a meritless lawsuit that had no business being brought to court at all.”

The New York Times reports that Frank is trying to “scuttle the deal” by objecting to the settlement in court.