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Friday, April 15, 2011

Settlement Delayed, Settlement Denied Part 3: Where's My Check?

Image courtesy of Idea go / FreeDigitalPhotos.net
New Post as of July 29: Settlement Delayed Part 6: Checks Are Here!

This is the 3rd Part of the Settlement Delayed series

Settlement Delayed, Settlement Denied Part 1
Settlement Delayed, Settlement Denied Part 2: The Truth About The Delay
Settlement Delayed, Settlement Denied Part 3: Where's My Check?


That's a good question. But in order to answer that, there are 2 things that I need to share to everybody regarding the outcome of the March 25 final hearing: One good news, and the other one is not that good, but it is not that bad either. I would like to remind our readers again that RGISBlog Admins are not the proper resource persons to ask about questions related to settlement issues but we appreciate all your inquiries.

The Plaintiffs' lawyers and Rust Consulting are the legitimate media for up-to-date information on the subject. So the following are for informational purposes only.

First, lets start with the good news.

As of April 1, 2011 the Court has GRANTED the following 3 important plaintiffs' motions which include:
  1. Plaintiffs’ Motion for Final Approval of Class Action Settlement [Docket No. 912]; 
  2. Plaintiffs’ Motion for an Award of Reasonable Attorneys’ Fees, Costs and Expenses [Docket No. 909]; and 
  3. Plaintiffs’ Motion for Service Awards to Named Plaintiffs and Opt-In Plaintiff Lund
The following are the words of Magistrate Judge Joseph Spero in the conclusion for the 3 plaintiffs' motions he summarily approved on April 1, 2011:

"For the reasons set forth above, the Court: (1) GRANTS Plaintiffs’ Motion for Final Approval of Class   Action Settlement [Docket No. 912]; (2) GRANTS Plaintiffs’ Motion for an Award of Reasonable Attorneys’ Fees, Costs and Expenses [Docket No. 909]; and GRANTS Plaintiffs’ Motion for Service Awards to Named Plaintiffs and Opt-In Plaintiff Lund. IT IS SO ORDERED."

These motions were granted only AFTER the March 25 final hearing when issues and objections have been addressed which I already have mentioned in my previous post. This is good news because, once the actual distribution of Reasonable Attorneys' Fees, Costs and Expenses, Service Awards to selected named Plaintiffs have been completely administered, the distribution of Settlement Checks for every single individual claimant is inevitable. Which bring us to my next point: 

Second, when can I receive my settlement check?

As of April 15, no Motion For Distribution of the Net Settlement has been granted yet. The plaintiffs will get to that stage. You cannot receive anything yet until the Court approves that motion. That motion when it is granted, also tells the date of the initial distribution.

In other words, we have not gone that far yet.


A sample settlement award check for damages. Courtesy of besser.tsoa.nyu.edu


Typical Steps to Receiving a Settlement Claim

First, the Plaintiffs' attorneys will collect the gross settlement check and hold the money in a trust account. After the gross check has been received, plaintiffs attorneys, by virtue of a Court order will receive their legal fees FIRST. These fees, such as attorneys fees, litigation costs, administrative fees, settlement fund administration fees, service awards fees, among others will be subtracted from the gross settlement check.

How much is the legal fees, costs and litigation expenses for the RGIS lawsuit?
You may not believe it, but here's a mind boggling figures that the Court has approved:

  • Attorneys' Fees:                                            $11,307,449.62
  • Expenses incurred by Schneider Wallace:     $  1,598,589.41          

These figures do not include the Net Settlement Administration fees, and service award fees to named plaintiffs that amount to $5,000.00 per individual.

However, the Court RESERVES ruling on Plaintiffs' Motion for awards of costs for the following law firms pending Plaintiffs' submission of supplemental documentation from them substantiating the costs they incurred:
  • Grady Schneider
  • Goldtsein Demchak and
  • Bailey Pinney

That motion is yet to be approved by the Court.

When all these fees and awards have been distributed, including the pending motion for awards for the law firms just mentioned, then Plaintiffs proceed to the next step:

Second, Plaintiffs shall file the Motion for Distribution of Net Settlement. Plaintiffs shall wait for the approval of the motion by the Court. The Court may grant it or reserves its rights pending resolution of possible issues or objections related to the motion.

Third, when it is approved, typically the claim administrator (Rust Consulting in this case) begins to mail out claim forms to eligible claimants. These claim forms will be filled up and mailed back immediately to the addressed provided by the administrator. You will also get detailed instructions on how to file your claims. One convenient option is to file your claim by logging in to a webpage exclusively set up by the claims administrator for filing online claims. The administrator will process them thereafter.

Fourth, the actual claims administration begins. For more than 30,000 potential claim forms to be mailed out and mail back in, it will take a lot of time to process them including online submission of claims, not mentioning potential issues that may arise anytime between these processes which include lost claim forms, return to sender forms, late submissions, not completely filled up forms, online claim submission bottlenecks, among others. It is going to be a huge task. Schneider Wallace estimates that claims administration fees alone can go from $200,000.00 and up.


So, going back to the original question, it all depends on how fast Plaintiffs' attorneys claim their share for legal fees, costs, and expenses, how fast the awarding of Named Plaintiffs' services, how fast the Court approves the motion to claim legal fees for the three remaining law firms pending submission of supplemental documentation, how fast the Plaintiffs file the Motion for Distribution of Net Settlement and how fast the Court will grant it. 

It also depends how fast Rust Consulting in mailing out claim forms to tens of thousands of claimants, and how fast you will respond to your claim form, how complex potential issues that may arise, and how efficient Rust Consulting will respond to these issues as Claims Administrator. 

Now, approximate all these time factors, and you get how long would it take for your own check to get into your mailbox.

If you have questions, please call Rust Consulting at 1-877-310-2748 or the Plaintiffs' Lawyers.

Cheers!

All information expressed from this post are of the authors. They does not solicit, constitute, endorse, or construed to have legal basis, implications, weigh, or merit to a particular case, or any case in dispute. The authors disclaim nor represent any of the parties involved in the lawsuit.

57 comments:

  1. Money TrainApril 16, 2011

    Amazing details. Great info. Thanks.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thank you for the information. I guess we'll just wait and see how things go.

    ReplyDelete
  3. I am tired with a lot of court motions. Why don't they just give my money, then I will be silent forever!!!

    ReplyDelete
  4. i need my money 2 pay da book...if anything happen 2 me its RGIS fault & dats another lawsuit heading ya way so send da checks now. :-D

    ReplyDelete
  5. If this is true, then why did they say in the settlement notification it would take approximately 25 days after the hearing that was to take place on january 28th?

    ReplyDelete
  6. That's what I want to know! Jan. 28th was only, what, THREE months ago! I'm glad to get a settlement but did you have to JERK our chains like that?!

    Anna E Moss

    ReplyDelete
  7. I thought in the original form it said we had to do nothing else if we had a viable address...in other words what is this about another claim form?

    ReplyDelete
  8. Detroit ExpertApril 18, 2011

    Hey guys!
    As the title of this post says, "Settlement Delayed." I think we'll just have to accept the fact that we don't always get the things we want ON TIME but we eventually will.

    I think it is fairly enough to know that there are justifiable reasons for the delay as previously mentioned from this blog.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Detroit, you failed to mention to second half of the post title: SETTLEMENT DENIED. lol!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hey Detroit Expert! Here's the "justifiable" reason for delaying mailing the checks: The longer the attorneys hold on to the $11mil, the more interest on the money they accrue! Is that "fair" enough for you? What the hell you talking about? "Justifiable reasons," give me a break!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Give it time....RGIS has to scam the new employees to payoff the old employees!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I'm settling on Christmas at this point,I've been in an uninsured settlement before and I forgot about it before I got paid. YEARS. I agree its a little deceptive to have put a date on this thing in an official court document.
    Good luck sueing the courts though,the lawyers get all the money anyways...thats pretty much standard. They'll be sitting pretty by the time some of us have our piddling amounts.

    Forgive me for thinking this last blog sounded a bit curt but I think it not unreasonable for people to want information your in the habit of providing. If you don't want to be responsible for legal information don't talk about it. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Stating or specifying some form of "disclaimer" to a particular blog, website, general statement, or information is very common.

    Most of the millions of websites, blogs, portals, that are publicly available or accessible through the internet have some form of disclaimer, not mentioning printed and digital publications, including EULA among software programs.

    Simply put, a disclaimer is a statement intended to specify or delimit the scope of rights and obligations. It may specify warnings or expectations to the general public in order to fulfill a duty of care owed to prevent unreasonable risk of harm or injury.

    This blog is no exemption. Information provided here are in AS IS basis. We checked our sources and most of the time we provide links for them. We try to be responsible, but be a responsible reader as well.

    Please read the entire Disclaimer of this blog at:

    http://rgisblog.blogspot.com/p/disclaimer.html

    ReplyDelete
  14. They are not stupid. They will hold the money, incur more attorney fees, admin fees etc. In 6 months there will be nothing left but the $25 min. they are required to send you. No matter what they're in the right business.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Too much delay already. Why are they keeping the settlement money? At least Schneider and Wallace or at least Rust consulting should provide where is the current status of the case now.

    ReplyDelete
  16. ...yeah so we can get a real update,not something with a snide taste to it.
    Interesting how part 3 says they have nothing to do with the case,while part 2 specifically uses the words I and we in referering to what depends on when money could be received.

    ReplyDelete
  17. There is a lot of good information on this update, but it's about time! Everything else on the web is so outdated and misleading that I can't help but get frusterated. I just hope that they do whatever they can to speed up this process and the amount that is distributed isn't too much of a disappointment. Keep your fingers crossed and in due time, wave goodbye to RGIS. It's time they pay us for their mistakes.

    ReplyDelete
  18. Claim forms were already sent out. That's what caused the initial delay- people saying they never received any claim form and weren't a part of the law suit. That initial claim form also stated that nothing further would need to be done to receive the settlement check.

    With that said, the rest of this blog update seems informative.

    ReplyDelete
  19. AnonymousMay 03, 2011

    Just give us our damn money you vultures!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  20. AnonymousMay 03, 2011

    KEEP CALLING RUST CONSTULTANTS AND CALL AND THE LAWYERS OFFICE EVERYDAY, IT RECEIVED THE FINAL APPROVAL TO DISTBURTE OUR SETTLEMENTS CHECKS ON MARCH 23, 2011, AT THAT POINT THEY ARE BY LAW, AND PER CIVIL SUIT AGREEMENT, SURPOSE TO PAY OUT THE CLASS MEMBERS NO LATER THAN 25 DAYS AFTER THE COURT APPROVES LEGAL FEE'S TO BE PAID CALL AND COMPLAIN AND CHECK STATUS 1-800687-0024 OR 415-421-7000/AND ASK WHY RUST CONSULTANTS DOESNT HAVE AN UPDATE YET, SOMETHINGS SHADY, THE LAWYER GRADY AND SCHUNDER TOLD ME IN APRIL 25, 2011 WHEN I CALLED WE WOULD RECEIVE OUR CHECKS THE SECOND WEEK OF MAY, NOW THEY SAY BEGAIN OF JUNE,IF WE KEEP BUGGING THEY THEY WILL HAVE TO COMPLOY WITH THE 25 DAYS THEY BEEN PAID SO WHY SHOULDNT WE ITS THE LAW. 25 DAYS OR WE HAVE THE RIGHT TO GO TO THE COURT AND ASK JUDGE SURPRO THEY ARE NOT FOLLOWING ACCORDING TO THE CIVIL AGREEMENT WEVE ALL RECEVICE CLAIMS FROM RUST IN DECEMBER 2010 REMEMBER . KEEP BUGING TILL WE GET PAID, THE GARCIAVS RGIS WAS FINALIZED 01/03/2011 AND I RECEIVED MY SETTLEMENT CHECK FEB 15.2011 SO SOMETHING IS SHADY WITH THE LAWYERS NOW....

    ReplyDelete
  21. AnonymousMay 03, 2011

    2day between 1-4pm everybody start calling either da lawyers or RC. blow their phone up...

    ReplyDelete
  22. money money moneyMay 03, 2011

    Rust Conslting phones are smokin' busy. I can't even get through. Keep calling guys!!!! Our payment is long overdue!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  23. so any new info on the settlement after the massive calling event that took place yesterday?

    ReplyDelete
  24. AnonymousMay 08, 2011

    reminder.....the longer they keep our money, the more interest they make, which does not have to be paid out to US. Its money in THEIR pockets.

    ReplyDelete
  25. AnonymousMay 09, 2011

    Speaking of interest accrued for the 27Million being deposited in a trust bank, it is making an average of $27,000.00 a month based on the average interest rate for savings account which is 1% should the money has been deposited as savings in a trust bank.

    Compute that since the payment has been delayed as of January.

    ReplyDelete
  26. AnonymousMay 09, 2011

    I called Rust Consulting today and their response was that they are still waiting to hear from the courts as to when they can issue checks.

    ReplyDelete
  27. AnonymousMay 09, 2011

    In the official settlement notice i received last year, it says i will receive approximately $1900. I am guessing I will get about less than half of that amount?

    ReplyDelete
  28. The $1900 that you will receive is the estimated amount that you would expect to receive. It could be lesser considering the additional hundreds of plaintiffs who filed their consent at a later period which the court has approved thereafter.

    Plus other expenses that the court might approved prior to signing a motion for distribution of net settlement.

    ReplyDelete
  29. AnonymousMay 11, 2011

    RGIS and RUST (ain't that an appropriate name for a slow assed payor of our money!) PAY US OUR MONEY ASAP NOW OR WE MAY JUST HAVE TO SUE YOU TOO. VULTURES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  30. AnonymousMay 11, 2011

    i called rust consulting today because i was told they were sending them this week, and was told almost the same thing as..........Anonymous said...
    I called Rust Consulting today and their response was that they are still waiting to hear from the courts as to when they can issue checks.

    May 09, 2011 ......was told that they were waiting to hear the outcome of the court which doesnt make sence to me cause we know what happened at the last court date so its just more run around..........

    ReplyDelete
  31. AnonymousMay 11, 2011

    The Court must approved first the Motion for the Distribution of Net Settlement that plaintiff had filed earlier.

    When the Court so ordered, then Rust Consulting can initiate and distribute claims. For now, let's just wait. We are almost there.

    ReplyDelete
  32. AnonymousMay 31, 2011

    THIS IS TOTALLY A BUNCH OF THE SAME OLD RUNAROUND!!! LETS JUST CUT TO THE CHASE AND GIVE US WHAT WE ARE ENTITLED TO AND BE DONE WITH IT!!! aND WHAT HAPPENS TO ALL THE INTREST MONEY FROM THE 27 MILLION WHO GETS THAT AND WHY IS IT IN A SAVINGS ACCOUNT SOUNDS LIKE SOMEONE IS STICKING IT TO US AND ITS NOT JUST RGIS ALONE!!!

    ReplyDelete
  33. I just spoke to Rust Consulting, and payments will be going out sometime in June, no specific day, could be the 30th of June at the latest. Yeah!!!

    ReplyDelete
  34. AnonymousJune 22, 2011

    I just called Rust Consulting, and they still do not have a day to mail out checks, but she said my June 30th. I told her from the blogs I've read online, that if they take any longer than that they will be in contempt of court. HAHAHA

    ReplyDelete
  35. AnonymousJune 29, 2011

    LOOKS LIKE RUST CONSULTING WILL BE IN CONTEMPT OF COURT. I JUST SPOKE TO A REP AND HE SAID THAT THERE ARE CIRCUMSTANCES THAT ARE MAKING THIS TAKE LONGER THAN EXPECTED, SO LATE JULY FOR CHECKS TO BE ISSUED, AND TAXES ARE BEING TAKEN OUT. I ASKED HIM WHAT CIRCUMSTANCES, HE SAID THAT TAXES OUT OF PAYMENTS, AND A FEW MEMBERS WERE ADDED, AND NEW RE-CALCULATIONS. THIS IS BS!!!!

    ReplyDelete
  36. AnonymousJuly 18, 2011

    Anyone get their checks yet??
    I am doubtful these checks will arrive by Aug. the way this is going.

    It's already July 18th... Where is our money, rgis???? How many customers & businesses do they have to scam to pay us??

    ReplyDelete
  37. AnonymousJuly 26, 2011

    Haven't gotten my check yet. Will call Grady-Schneider tomorrow if I haven't rec'd it when I ck my mail tonight. As far as RGIS, they paid the consulting companies already, it's up to them to distribute the checks.

    ReplyDelete
  38. AnonymousJuly 26, 2011

    i called today and was told checks are going out tomorrow i was also told you could call in on thursday to see if your one of the people getting a check

    ReplyDelete
  39. AnonymousJuly 28, 2011

    I was told today, that checks were mailed out yesterday, 7/27/11. Took them long enough!!! I'll let you all know how much they took out in taxes, and when I rec'd it.

    ReplyDelete
  40. AnonymousJuly 29, 2011

    The checks are being sent from minnesota, I'm from California, checks were sent out through regular mail, Rust consultant say it takes about 5-7 days.

    ReplyDelete
  41. I rec'd my check Saturday. You will need to file a W-2 with your taxes for 2011. My check was 15% smaller than I was told it would be.

    ReplyDelete
  42. what should i do if i havent gotten my check is there a number i can call

    ReplyDelete
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  57. How would I find my settlement check amount


    ReplyDelete

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