If you were affected by flooding from Hurricane Katrina or Rita, you may be eligible to get a payment from a revised class action settlement.

Transcription

1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF LOUISIANA If you were affected by flooding from Hurricane Katrina or Rita, you may be eligible to get a payment from a revised class action settlement. A federal court authorized this notice. This is not a solicitation from a lawyer. Note: If you received a prior notice or information about this settlement, the settlement has been revised and this notice contains new information about settlement benefits. A partial settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit about the alleged failures and overtopping of levees and other flood and water control structures during Hurricanes Katrina and Rita. You may be included in the proposed Settlement Class if you lived, owned property, operated a business or were present within the Parishes of Jefferson, Orleans or St. Bernard, Louisiana at the time of Hurricanes Katrina or Rita. Three settlement funds totaling $20,208, as of November 30, 2012 (plus any additional interest after that date) have been established for the benefit of the Settlement Class. After fees, costs, expenses and Class Representative awards are paid, remaining settlement funds will be paid to eligible claimants. The Court has appointed a Special Master to oversee the settlement. The Special Master has recommended a Limited Fund Distribution Model (the Distribution Model ) to calculate how available funds will be paid to people and businesses who submit eligible claims. Your legal rights are affected whether you act, or don't act. Read this notice carefully. YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OPTIONS IN THIS SETTLEMENT OBJECT SPEAK AT A COURT HEARING DO NOTHING SUBMIT A CLAIM FORM DO NOT SUBMIT A CLAIM FORM Write to the Court by August 1, 2013 about why you don t like the settlement or any part of the settlement. Write to the Court by August 1, 2013 and ask to speak in Court about an objection. If you do not object by August 1, 2013, you will give up any right to object. If you do not ask to speak in Court by August 1, 2013, you will give up any right to speak in Court about your objection. This is the only way to get a payment. Claims forms are not available at this time and will become available only after, and if, the Court decides to approve the settlement. If you received this notice by mail, a claim form will be mailed to you automatically. Get no payment from the settlement. Anyone included in the Settlement Class does not have the right to get out of or be excluded from the settlement. These rights and options and the deadlines to exercise them are explained in this notice. The Court in charge of this case still has to decide whether to approve or certify the Settlement Class and if so, whether to approve the settlement. Visit (the Website ) to view the Class Settlement Agreement and additional information.

2 BASIC INFORMATION... PAGE 3 1. Why was this notice issued? 2. What is this lawsuit about? 3. What is considered a levee? 4. When did Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit Louisiana? 5. What is the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area? 6. Why is this a class action? 7. Why is there a settlement? WHO IS IN THE SETTLEMENT... PAGE 4 8. How do I know if I am part of the settlement? 9. What are the three settlement Subclasses? THE SETTLEMENT BENEFITS... PAGE What is the amount of the settlement? 11. What will be paid from the settlement funds? 12. How will payments for valid claims be calculated? 13. For damage to residential property, how will points be calculated? 14. For damage to a home s contents, how will points be calculated? 15. What are Other Individual Claims and how will points be calculated? 16. How will points be calculated related to the death of a family member? 17. How will points be calculated for businesses? 18. How much should I expect to receive from the settlement? HOW TO GET BENEFITS... PAGE Do I have to submit a claim to receive a payment? 20. How do I get a claim form? 21. Who will oversee the settlement? 22. How will my claim be processed? 23. What am I giving up? THE LAWYERS REPRESENTING YOU... P AGE Do I have a lawyer in this case? 25. How will the lawyers be paid? OBJECTING TO THE SETTLEMENT... PAGE How do I object? THE COURT S HEARINGS... PAGE When and where will the Court consider whether to approve the settlement? 28. Do I have to come to the hearings? 29. May I speak at the hearings? IF YOU DO NOTHING... PAGE What happens if I do nothing at all? GETTING MORE INFORMATION... PAGE How do I get more information? 2

3 BASIC INFORMATION 1. Why was this notice issued? A Court authorized this notice because you have a right to know about a revised proposed partial settlement of this class action, and about all of your options, before the Court decides whether to allow the Settlement Class to be certified and, if so, whether to approve the settlement. The revised settlement establishes how benefits will be distributed and a process to submit claims. This notice explains the lawsuit, the revised settlement and your legal rights. Judge Ivan L.R. Lemelle in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana is overseeing this class action. The group of cases is known by a designated lead case called Jared Vodanovich v. Boh Brothers Construction Co., LLC, case number The people who sued are called the "Plaintiffs," and the Orleans Levee District, the Board of Commissioners of the Orleans Levee District, the Lake Borgne Basin Levee District, the Board of Commissioners of the Lake Borgne Basin Levee District, the East Jefferson Levee District, the Board of Commissioners of the East Jefferson Levee District and their insurance company, St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, are called the "Settling Defendants." The Class Settlement Agreement, available at the Website, describes all of the details about the proposed settlement. The Class Settlement Agreement may, with approval of the Court, be modified by written agreement by the lawyers for the Settling Defendants and the lawyers representing the Plaintiffs without giving any additional notice, provided that any modifications are not materially adverse (or in other words, significantly unfavorable) to the Settlement Class. 2. What is this lawsuit about? The lawsuit alleges levees and other flood and water control structures failed and/or were overtopped as a result of Hurricanes Katrina or Rita because they were not properly designed, inspected, or maintained, and that this failure caused property damage, personal injury and other losses. The Settling Defendants say that the levees failed for reasons beyond their control and that they did not do anything wrong. 3. What is considered a levee? This term includes levees, embankments, seawalls, jetties, breakwaters, water-basins, floodwalls, floodgates, gates, outfall canals, drainage canals, berms, spoil banks, and other works related to such projects, and/or any other flood or water control structure(s) whether man-made or natural. A levee failure means an actual or alleged breaching, overtopping, seepage, collapse, undermining, weakening or any other alleged failure of levees. See Section II (37) of the Class Settlement Agreement for more information. 4. When did Hurricanes Katrina and Rita hit Louisiana? Hurricane Katrina made landfall in Louisiana on or around August 29, 2005 and Hurricane Rita made landfall on or around September 24, What is the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area? The term Hurricane Affected Geographic Area means the entire area located within the Parishes of Jefferson, Orleans and St. Bernard, Louisiana. 6. Why is this a class action? In a class action, one or more people called "Class Representatives" sue on behalf of people who have similar claims. All of these people who have similar claims are a "Settlement Class" or "Settlement Class members." One court resolves the issues for all Settlement Class members. At this point in time the Class Representatives for the three subclasses (see Question 9) include: Kenneth P. Armstrong (Subclass 1 and 3), Raymond Cousins (Subclass 1), Lattimore & Associates, Inc. (Subclass 1 3

4 and 3), Kiyokawa Foods, L.L.C. (Subclass 3), Thurman R. Kaiser (Subclass 2 and 3), Eddie E. Knighten (Subclass 2 and 3), Kenneth Polite (Subclass 2 and 3), Calvin Levy (Subclass 2 and 3), Donna Augustine (Subclass 3), and Jose Luis Rodriguez (Subclass 3). 7. Why is there a settlement? The Court did not decide in favor of the Plaintiffs or the Settling Defendants. Instead, both sides agreed to settle. This way, all of the insurance money (plus any interest) available to the Settling Defendants will be made available for the benefit of the Settlement Class (see Question 8). The Class Representatives and their attorneys think the settlement is best for all Settlement Class members. The settlement does not mean that the Settling Defendants did anything wrong. WHO IS IN THE SETTLEMENT 8. How do I know if I am part of the settlement? The Settlement Class consists of all Persons (a) who at the time of Hurricane Katrina and/or Hurricane Rita (1) were located, present or residing in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area, or (2) owned, leased, possessed, used or otherwise had any interest in homes, places of business or other immovable or movable property on or in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area, and (b) who incurred any losses, damages and/or injuries arising from, in any manner related to, or connected in any way with Hurricane Katrina and/or Hurricane Rita and any alleged Levee failures and/or waters that originated from, over, under or through the levees under the authority and/or control of all or any of the levee district defendants. Persons includes individuals, businesses, associations, governmental entities and any other type of legal person or entity. The following questions will help you determine if you are a Settlement Class member. Question Yes No Did you live in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area at the time of Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita? Were you visiting or present in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area at the time of Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita? Did you own, lease (rent) or otherwise have any interest in any home, business or other property in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area at the time of Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita? Do you have any losses, damages, and/or injuries from Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita that were a result of any alleged levee failures and/or waters that originated from or that came over, under or through the levees that were under the authority or control of the levee district defendants? Continue if you answer Yes to any of these three questions. You are a Settlement Class member. If you answered No to all of these questions, you are not a Settlement Class member. You are not a Settlement Class member 9. What are the three settlement Subclasses? For purposes of this settlement, the Settlement Class has been divided into three separate Subclasses: Subclass 1 (Lake Borgne Basin Levee District) - the entirety of St. Bernard Parish. Subclass 2 (East Jefferson Levee District) - the entirety of Jefferson Parish plus that portion of Orleans Parish shown in dark gray on Distribution Model Attachment A.1. Subclass 3 (Orleans Levee District) - the entirety of Orleans Parish plus those portions of Jefferson Parish and St. Bernard Parish shown in dark gray on Distribution Model Attachment A.2. 4

5 10. What is the amount of the settlement? THE SETTLEMENT BENEFITS Three settlement funds totaling $20,208, as of November 30, 2012 (plus any additional interest after that date) have been established for the benefit of the Settlement Class. This amount is the total insurance money available to the three levee district defendants ($17 million), plus Judicial Interest (as defined in the Class Settlement Agreement). The insurance money for each levee district is: Lake Borgne Basin Levee District ($2 million), East Jefferson Levee District ($5 million) and Orleans Levee District ($10 million). There is a separate fund for each Subclass: Subclass 1 (Lake Borgne Basin Levee District) - $2,295,936.08, plus any additional interest after November 30, 2012 Subclass 2 (East Jefferson Levee District) - $5,738,283.21, plus any additional interest after November 30, 2012 Subclass 3 (Orleans Levee District) - $12,174,737.91, plus any additional interest after November 30, 2012 The lawyers representing Plaintiffs and Settling Defendants have jointly concluded and agreed, and will ask the Court to confirm as part of the settlement: that under law, the Settlement Class can exact no additional money or property from the levee district defendants in this settlement because the levee district defendants are governmental bodies; that the settlement funds, comprised of the total insurance money available plus Judicial Interest, is the most that the Settlement Class can expect to receive in the settlement. 11. What will be paid from the settlement funds? Settlement funds will be used to pay valid claims after deducting administrative costs and payments related to a Common Benefit Cap. This table shows estimated administrative costs assuming 200,000 or 400,000 or 600,000 or 800,000 total claims: Claims Received Administrative Activities 200, , , ,000 Settlement Notice mailing 971, , , ,643 Settlement Notice paid media 96,324 96,324 96,324 96,324 Class member database transfer and coordination 25,000 25,000 25,000 25,000 Claims process paid media 94,783 94,783 94,783 94,783 Print and mail claim forms. Claim form receipt and 644, , ,929 1,072,682 scanning. Assemble claimant database. Claim processing 328, , , ,458 Print and mail notice of estimated payment amount. 78, , , ,000 Print and mail settlement checks 168, , , ,996 Special Master fees 25,000 25,000 25,000 25,000 Estimated Administrative Costs $2,432,486 $2,797,999 $3,165,124 $3,497,886 As described in Question 25, there is a $3.5 million Common Benefit Cap on awards to the Class Representatives and on payments to attorneys related to work done to benefit the entire Settlement Class. The Court must approve all payments within the Common Benefit Cap and the actual amount paid under the Cap could be less than $3.5 million. This table shows projected amounts to be paid to valid claimants using the conservative assumption that the maximum of $3.5 million is awarded by the Court under the Common Benefit Cap. Claims Received Net Settlement Fund Allocation 200, , , ,000 Settlement funds as of November 30, 2012 (plus any additional interest after that date as described in Question 10) less estimated administrative costs (as 17,776,471 17,410,958 17,043,833 16,711,071 shown in prior table) Common Benefit Cap (maximum award) -3,500,000-3,500,000-3,500,000-3,500,000 Remaining funds to pay valid claims $14,276,471 $13,910,958 $13,543,833 $13,211,071 5

6 12. How will payments for valid claims be calculated? The Court has appointed an independent Special Master to oversee the settlement (see Question 21). The Special Master has recommended a Distribution Model to calculate payments to claimants who submit valid claims. If you received this Notice by mail, a copy of the Distribution Model is included. The Distribution Model is also available at the Website. For each valid claim (see the section How to Get Benefits below), points will be calculated under the following categories (see Questions for more information on these categories): Individual Claims 1. Property Damage (Residential) 2. Contents Damage (Residential) 3. Other Individual Claims: a. Resident Claims b. Non-Resident Claims c. Visitor Claims 4. Death Claims a. Survival Claims b. Wrongful Death Claims Commercial/Business Claims 1. Property Damage (Commercial) 2. Contents (Commercial) 3. Loss of Business Income All points assigned to a valid claim will be added together to create a point total. The monetary value of a point will be different for each Subclass and will be based upon the total funds available for each Subclass. Claims may be paid from the settlement funds of more than one Subclass. For example, responsibility for flood damage in a particular geographic area may be allocated between two levee districts or a claimant may have owned multiple properties and/or had business operations in multiple parts of the greater New Orleans area. 13. For damage to a residential property, how will points be calculated? For flood damage to a house, condominium or similar residential property, points will be calculated based upon (a) geographic location; (b) the average value of residential properties in that geographic area; and (c) the depth of flooding in that geographic area. 14. For damage to a home s contents, how will points be calculated? For damage to a home s contents (including apartments and other rental units), points will be calculated at 26.4% of the points calculated for damage to that property (as described in Question 13). To clarify, home owners will be eligible to receive points for both property damage (Question 13) and, if applicable, contents (Question 14). 15. What are Other Individual Claims and how will points be calculated? Other Individual Claims includes claims for damage to personal property not falling within Questions 13 and 14 (for example a motor vehicle), claims for inconvenience and expenses from evacuations, and claims for pain, suffering, emotional distress and other personal injuries. Points for Other Individual Claims for adult residents will be calculated based upon (a) geographic location; and (b) the depth of flooding in that geographic area. Each resident child under the age of 18 as of September 24, 2005 will be eligible to receive 15,000 points for Other Individual Claims. Non-residents may be awarded points for Other Individual Claims. A non-resident who owned or leased property in the 6

7 Hurricane Affected Geographic Area at the time of Hurricane Katrina or Hurricane Rita will be eligible to receive 10,000 points. A visitor or non-resident who did not own or lease property but was present in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area on August 29, 2005 or September 24, 2005, will be eligible to receive 5,000 points. 16. How will points be calculated related to the death of a family member? Claims may be submitted related to the death of a family member for (1) survival claims and (2) wrongful death claims. Survival claims are for pain and suffering by the deceased prior to death. For survival claims, 100,000 points will be assigned for any one death and these points will be divided among all eligible family members. Wrongful death claims are for damages sustained by surviving family members. For wrongful death claims, 807,000 points will be assigned to each eligible family member. 17. How will points be calculated for businesses? For flood damage to a commercial property, points will be calculated based upon: (a) geographic location; (b) the depth of flooding in that geographic area; and (c) the greater of either the property value reflected on your property tax statement (if you submit a property tax statement with your claim), OR the average value of residential properties in the geographic area. Awards for commercial contents damage are 26.4% of the property damage award calculation for the property location. For commercial/business loss of income claims, points will be calculated based on the lesser of either (a) the amount of lost revenue directly attributable to the flooding from the levee breaches or (b) a percentage of your annual gross revenue. On the claim form, you will be required to document the amount of lost revenue directly attributable to the flooding and your gross annual revenue. 18. How much should I expect to receive from the settlement? In order to provide Class Members a sense of possible payment amounts, GCR, Inc. ( GCR ) developed a computer model to forecast the distribution of settlement funds to pay valid claims based on a number of reasonable assumptions. This model has been reviewed and recommended by the Special Master. The table below is a summary of estimated payments by claim type assuming 200,000 or 400,000 or 600,000 or 800,000 total claims are received. Key assumptions included in the model are shown after the table. Visit the Website to view a complete report of estimated payment amounts by claim type and the underlying assumptions used in the model. Please be aware that actual settlement payments could be higher or lower because the number of different types of claims that will actually be submitted, and other factors that will influence individual payments, are unknown and unknowable at this time. If, for example, the number of valid wrongful death claims and/or business claims is higher than has been forecasted, payments to residential property and rental claimants could be substantially lower than the amounts shown below. Additionally, if the assigned value of your residential property is more or less than $142,000 (which is the assumed property value used for this analysis), this will likely affect your actual payment amount. Examples of how to read the table: If you (1) were an owner-occupied residential property owner in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area at the time of Hurricane Katrina and/or Hurricane Rita, (2) submit a valid claim for yourself only ( single claimant ), and (3) had flooding of 4 feet or more, you would receive an estimated average payment of $295 if 200,000 total valid claims are received. If you (1) were a renter living in the in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area at the time of Hurricane Katrina and/or Hurricane Rita, (2) submit a valid claim for a Typical Family, and (3) had no flooding, you would receive an estimated average payment of $22 if 800,000 total valid claims are received. 7

8 GCR Analysis of Estimated Payment Amounts Claims Claim Type 200, , , ,000 Residential property owner, Single claimant, Flooding of 4 feet or more $295 $121 $100 $74 Residential property owner, Single claimant, Flooding of 2 to 4 feet $210 $86 $71 $52 Residential property owner, Single claimant, Flooding 1 to 2 feet $124 $51 $42 $31 Residential property owner, Single claimant, Flooding less than 1 foot $65 $26 $22 $16 Residential property owner, Single claimant, No flooding $39 $16 $13 $10 Residential property owner, Typical Family, Flooding of 4 feet or more $463 $189 $156 $116 Residential property owner, Typical Family, Flooding of 2 to 4 feet $338 $138 $114 $84 Residential property owner, Typical Family, Flooding 1 to 2 feet $214 $88 $72 $53 Residential property owner, Typical Family, Flooding less than 1 foot $127 $52 $43 $32 Residential property owner, Typical Family, No flooding $89 $37 $30 $22 Renter, Single claimant, Flooding of 4 feet or more $185 $76 $62 $46 Renter, Single claimant, Flooding of 2 to 4 feet $136 $56 $46 $34 Renter, Single claimant, Flooding 1 to 2 feet $87 $36 $30 $22 Renter, Single claimant, Flooding less than 1 foot $54 $22 $18 $13 Renter, Single claimant, No flooding $39 $16 $13 $10 Renter, Typical Family, Flooding of 4 feet or more $352 $144 $119 $88 Renter, Typical Family, Flooding of 2 to 4 feet $264 $108 $89 $66 Renter, Typical Family, Flooding 1 to 2 feet $177 $72 $60 $44 Renter, Typical Family, Flooding less than 1 foot $116 $47 $39 $29 Renter, Typical Family, No flooding $89 $37 $30 $22 Non-resident property owner, Flooding of 4 feet or more $118 $48 $40 $30 Non-resident property owner, Flooding of 2 to 4 feet $81 $33 $27 $20 Non-resident property owner, Flooding of 1 to 2 feet $45 $18 $15 $11 Non-resident property owner, Flooding of less than 1 foot $19 $8 $6 $5 Non-resident property owner, No flooding $8 $3 $3 $2 Visitor $4 $2 $1 $1 Death benefit $1,020 $418 $344 $255 Business claim, Flooding of 4 feet or more $168 $69 $57 $42 Key computer model assumptions: The distribution of claims among categories is based on available data for the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area, including total population, ratio of homeowners to renters, typical family size, number of visitors, number of non-resident property owners and number of businesses. The estimated 2005 population of the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area is 957,228. Residential property value of $142,000 (this was the average value of residential properties in the Hurricane Affected Geographic Area in 2005); Percentage of homeowner claims vs. renter claims is 44.3%; Number of people included within a Typical Family is Non-resident property owner claims as a percentage of total property claims are 2%; Visitor claims as a percentage of total claims are 1%; Wrongful death claims total between 809 and 1,452 claims; Business claims as a percentage of total valid claims are 7.5%. Administrative costs are as estimated in Question 11. The model conservatively assumes that the $3.5 million maximum is paid under the Common Benefit Cap (see Question 25). The actual amount paid under the Cap could be less than $3.5 million. 8

9 HOW TO GET BENEFITS 19. Do I have to submit a claim to receive a payment? Yes. You must submit a complete claim form to be eligible to receive a payment. 20. How do I get a claim form? Claim forms are not available at this time and will become available only after, and if, the Court decides to approve the Settlement. After the Court approves the settlement, the Court will approve the claim form and set a date by which claims must be submitted or claim deadline. It cannot be determined at this time when the claim form will become available and it could be a year or longer. The claim form will be posted on the Website when it becomes available. If you received this notice by mail, a claim form will also be mailed to you automatically when the claim form becomes available. Otherwise, you may provide your name and mailing address by visiting the Website or sending a letter to: Levee Breach Settlement, PO Box 5053, Portland, OR If you move, it is your responsibility to provide a new mailing address by visiting the Website or sending a letter to: Levee Breach Settlement, PO Box 5053, Portland, OR Who will oversee the settlement? An independent "Special Master" appointed by the Court will oversee the settlement fund, the claims process, the operation of the Distribution Model, and payments to eligible claimants. The Special Master has agreed to limit his fees to $25, How will my claim be processed? After the claim deadline, the Special Master will oversee claims processing. Incomplete claims will be automatically rejected for example, claims that are not signed, do not provide all required information or do not include required documentation. The Special Master may request additional information from any claimant and/or object to any claim. After initial claim processing is complete, you will be mailed a decision letter explaining: (1) points assigned to your claim for each category, (2) the approximate dollar value of each point for your claim, and (3) your estimated final payment amount. If you believe there is a mathematical or other administrative error in the processing of your claim, you may request a review. The decision letter will explain how to request a review. Once the review by the Special Master has been completed, you will be notified by mail on the outcome of the review. If you disagree with the Special Master s decision, you will have 14 days from the date of the notice to request a further review by the District Judge who is supervising the settlement. The District Judge s decision is final and may not be appealed. Please note: in this post-claim review process, no objection will be permitted to the Distribution Model itself, to whether the scoring of your claim was fair or reasonable, or to the automatic disallowance of any claim that was incomplete when submitted. Upon approval by the Court, payments will be mailed to eligible claimants. Medicare Beneficiaries: Generally speaking, Medicare beneficiaries filing a claim against a third party for an alleged injury should notify Medicare s Coordination of Benefits Contractor (a process known as self-reporting ). However, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has requested that Medicare beneficiaries involved in this settlement not self- 9

10 report their claims to CMS or Medicare s Coordination of Benefits Contractor. As part of processing your claim form, the Settling Defendants will provide the necessary information to CMS, and CMS will notify you if any further action is required. 23. What am I giving up? Settlement Class members do not have the right to get out of or be excluded from the settlement. This means that if the Court grants final approval you will be bound by the settlement and you will not be able to sue, or continue to sue, the Settling Defendants, the Board of Commissioners of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East, the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority-East, their insurers, or any related people ("Released Parties"). This also means that all of the Court's orders will apply to you and legally bind you and you will "release" the Released Parties as described in Sections II(54) and IV of the Settlement Agreement. A complete copy of the Class Settlement Agreement can be obtained at the Website. The Class Settlement Agreement specifically describes the released claims in necessarily accurate legal terminology. Talk to Class Counsel (see Question 24) or your own lawyer if you have questions about the released claims or what they mean. 24. Do I have a lawyer in this case? THE LAWYERS REPRESENTING YOU The Court has appointed the following lawyers to represent you and other Settlement Class members as Class Counsel. You do not have to pay Class Counsel. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer and have that lawyer appear in court for you in this case, you may hire one at your own expense. Levee-Plaintiff Subgroup Daniel E. Becnel, Jr. Becnel Law Firm, LLC Reserve, Louisiana Joseph M. Bruno (Liaison Counsel) Bruno & Bruno New Orleans, Louisiana Walter Dumas Dumas & Associates Law Firm, LLC Baton Rouge, Louisiana Blayne Honeycutt Fayard & Honeycutt Denham Springs, Louisiana Darleen Jacobs Jacobs, Sarrat, Lovelace & Harris New Orleans, Louisiana Hugh Lambert Lambert & Nelson New Orleans, Louisiana Gerald E. Meunier (Liaison Counsel) Gainsburgh, Benjamin, David, Meunier & Warshauer, L.L.C. New Orleans, Louisiana MR-GO-Plaintiff Subgroup Jonathan Beauregard Andry Andry Law Firm New Orleans, Louisiana Joseph M. Bruno (Liaison Counsel) Bruno & Bruno New Orleans, Louisiana Clay Mitchell Levin, Papantonio, Thomas, Mitchell, Echsner & Proctor, PA Pensacola, Florida James P. Roy (Liaison Counsel) Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, L.L.C. Lafayette, Louisiana 10

11 25. How will the lawyers be paid? Class Counsel will not request any attorneys' fees from the settlement fund. However, Class Counsel will ask the Court for reimbursement of their costs and expenses out of the settlement fund. Class Counsel may also request awards of up to $2,000 for each of the Class Representatives. Other counsel representing any Settlement Class member may also request fees, costs and expenses for work done for the benefit of the entire Settlement Class. In no event will the fees, costs, expenses and awards described in this paragraph exceed the total sum of $3,500,000, called the Common Benefit Cap. The exact amount of these fees, costs, expenses and awards (within the Common Benefit Cap) will be determined by the Court after approval of the settlement. Any amount awarded by the Court will be deducted from the settlement fund prior to the distribution to Settlement Class members. If you previously hired or decide to hire your own lawyer to represent you at your own expense, your lawyer may be entitled a share of whatever payment you are eligible to receive from the settlement fund. 26. How do I object? OBJECTING TO THE SETTLEMENT If you re a Settlement Class Member, you can object if you don t like the settlement or any part of it including the Distribution Model and the Comment Benefit Cap. You can give reasons why you think the Court should not approve the settlement. The Court will consider your views. You may also request information (or discovery ) from the settling parties related to the settlement. The deadline for the completion of any such discovery is July 19, To object to the settlement or any part of it, you must send in a written objection in the case of Jared Vodanovich v. Boh Brothers Construction Co., LLC, case number Be sure to include the name of the case, the case number, your full name, address, address (if any), telephone number, your signature, the specific reasons why you object to the settlement, and any legal support or evidence that supports your objection that you wish to bring to the Court's attention. You must mail your objection to the three addresses listed below postmarked by August 1, COURT CLASS COUNSEL ST. PAUL S COUNSEL Clerk of Court United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana C151 Hale Boggs Federal Building 500 Poydras St. New Orleans, LA Joseph M. Bruno Bruno & Bruno 855 Baronne Street New Orleans, LA S. Ault Hootsell III Phelps Dunbar LLP Canal Place 365 Canal St., Suite 2000 New Orleans, LA Please note, this is your only opportunity to object to any part of the settlement including whether the Distribution Model is reasonable and fair. If you would like to speak in Court about your objection you need to file a "Notice of Intent to Appear" (see Question 29). 11

12 THE COURT S HEARINGS 27. When and where will the Court consider whether to approve the settlement? The Court has scheduled hearings that will start at 8:30 a.m. on September 23, 2013, at the Courthouse for the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, Section B, Hale Boggs Federal Building, 500 Poydras Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, The hearings may be continued or moved to a different date or time without additional notice, so it is a good idea to check At these hearings, the Court will consider whether the proposed Settlement Class should be approved or certified, and if so, whether the settlement (including the Distribution Model and Common Benefit Cap) should be approved. If there are objections, the Court will consider them. At or after these hearings, the Court will decide whether to approve the settlement. We do not know how long this decision will take. 28. Do I have to come to the hearings? No. Class Counsel will answer any questions that the Judge may have. But, you are welcome to come at your own expense. If you send an objection, you don't have to come to Court to talk about it. As long as you mailed your written objection on time, the Court will consider it. You may also pay your own lawyer to attend, but it's not necessary. 29. May I speak at the hearings? To ask to speak at the hearings, you must submit a valid objection (see Question 26) and you or your counsel, if any, must file a "Notice of Intent to Appear" in Jared Vodanovich v. Boh Brothers Construction Co., LLC, case number Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, and your signature. Send your Notice of Intent to Appear to the three addresses listed in Question 26 postmarked by August 1, The Court will determine whether or not anyone will be allowed to speak at the hearings about their objection. 30. What happens if I do nothing at all? IF YOU DO NOTHING You have the right to do nothing. If you do not object before August 1, 2013, you will lose your right to object (see Question 26). If the Court grants final approval to the settlement, you will be bound by it and you will not be able to sue, or continue to sue, the Released Parties about the legal claims in this case ever again. If you do not submit a claim form (after claim forms become available) by the claim deadline, you will not get a payment from the settlement. 31. How do I get more information? GETTING MORE INFORMATION This notice summarizes the proposed settlement. More details are in the Class Settlement Agreement. You can get a copy of the Class Settlement Agreement from the Website. You may also request a copy of the Class Settlement Agreement by writing to Levee Breach Settlement, PO Box 5053, Portland, OR