You have been identified as a member of a Class which has been the subject of a settlement. This settlement may affect your rights.

Transcription

1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE WESTERN DISTRICT OF MICHIGAN You have been identified as a member of a Class which has been the subject of a settlement. This settlement may affect your rights. This notice has been authorized by an order of a United States District Court. This is not a solicitation from a lawyer. A consumer has sued Financial Leads Services ( FLS ) alleging violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act ( FCRA ). The Court has allowed the lawsuit to be a class action on behalf of persons whose consumer reports were accessed and used by FLS. The Court has not decided whether FLS did anything wrong, but the parties have reached a settlement of the case which will avoid a trial by the court of the claims that were made in this case. There is no money available now, and no guarantee there will be. However, your legal rights are affected, and you have a choice to make now: YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OPTIONS IN THIS LAWSUIT DO NOTHING ASK TO BE EXCLUDED Stay in this lawsuit. Agree to the settlement. Give up certain rights. By doing nothing, you agree to the settlement which will provide money to you if the settlement is approved. All participants give up any rights to sue FLS and its affiliates separately for the same legal claims that are at issue in this lawsuit. Get out of this lawsuit. Get no benefits from it. Keep all your rights. If you ask to be excluded, you won t share in the class settlement, but you keep any rights to sue FLS and its affiliates separately about the same legal claims in this lawsuit. Your options are explained in this notice. To ask to be excluded, you must act before March 31, Your eligibility to participate in the class settlement will be determined by a Class Administrator based upon the criteria set forth below and which are detailed in the class settlement. To get more information read on and visit: 1

2 WHAT THIS NOTICE CONTAINS BASIC INFORMATION...PAGE 3 A. Why did I get this notice? B. What is this notice? C. What is this lawsuit about? D. What is a class action and who is involved? E. Why is this lawsuit a class action? THE CLAIMS IN THE LAWSUIT...PAGE 4 F. What does the lawsuit complain about? G. How did FLS answer? H. Has the Court decided who is right? WHO IS IN THE CLASS...PAGE 4 I. How do I know if I am part of this Class? J. What if I do not want to be a part of the Class? K. What happens if I do nothing at all? THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT...PAGE 5 L. What is the proposed settlement? M. What will I give up? N. Will I be waiving any other rights I might have against FLS? O. What is Mr. Franke asking for now? P. When will the settlement money be available? THE LAWYERS REPRESENTING YOU...PAGE 5 Q. Do I have a lawyer in the case? R. How much are the lawyers being paid? EXCLUDING YOURSELF FROM THE SETTLEMENT...PAGE 5 S. What should I do if I do not want to participate in the settlement? T. How do I opt out? U. If I exclude myself, can I participate in the settlement? V. If I do not exclude myself, can I sue later? OBJECTING TO THE SETTLEMENT...PAGE 6 W. How do I tell the Court if I do not like the settlement? X. What s the difference between objecting and excluding? THE COURT S FAIRNESS HEARING...PAGE 7 Y. What is a Fairness Hearing? Z. When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the settlement? AA. Do I have to come to the Fairness Hearing? BB. What should I do if I want to speak at the Fairness Hearing? INFORMATION ABOUT THE SUIT AND SETTLEMENT...PAGE 7 CC. Where can I get more information? DD. Should I contact the Court for more information? 2

3 BASIC INFORMATION A. Why did I get this notice? FLS s records show that your consumer report was accessed by FLS in May FLS may not have had a permissible purpose under federal law for this access. Christopher Franke was one of the people whose consumer report was accessed by FLS and he filed a class action lawsuit on behalf of himself and a group of other people (a Class of people) whose consumer reports were accessed by FLS in May The lawsuit is known as Franke v. FLS, Case No You have been identified as one of the people whose consumer report was accessed along with Mr. Franke s. Mr. Franke and FLS have proposed that a settlement be approved for the entire group or Class of persons who were treated similarly, so you are being notified of the settlement and that your rights may be affected. B. What is this notice? This is a notice of the proposed class action settlement between Mr. Franke and FLS. Mr. Franke and FLS have agreed to settle their case for the Class, and the Court has certified a Class or group of people who have been affected and may participate in the settlement process. Judge Robert J. Jonker of the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan is overseeing this class action and he ordered the parties to send this notice to you and the other Class Members. You have legal rights and options that you may exercise before the Court gives its final approval for the settlement. This notice provides you with information concerning your rights under the settlement. This notice is NOT a solicitation from an attorney. C. What is this lawsuit about? Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, a person who uses a consumer report must have a lawful reason for doing so. An example of a permissible purpose is when a bank reviews a consumer report to determine the consumer s eligibility for a pre-approved credit offer. This lawsuit is about whether FLS violated the Federal Fair Credit Reporting Act by accessing and using consumer reports without a legally permissible purpose under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. D. What is a class action and who is involved? A class action is a lawsuit filed by one person on behalf of other people who have suffered the same problem. In a class action lawsuit, one or more people called Class Representatives (in this case Christopher Franke) sue on behalf of other people who have similar claims. The group of people together are a Class or the Class Members. The person who sued-and all the Class Members like them-are called the Plaintiffs. The company they sued (in this case FLS) is called the Defendant. One court resolves the issues for everyone in the Class-except for those people who choose to exclude themselves from the Class. Any judgment or settlement of the case resolves the claims for all the people in the Class. The proposed settlement in this case would resolve any claims you might have for the same kinds of claims brought in this case by Mr. Franke. E. Why is this lawsuit a class action? The parties in this case Mr. Franke and FLS have asked the Court for permission to settle this case for themselves and the class members. This case is proceeding as a Class, because the Court must preliminarily certify the Class before it can fully implement the settlement and make the settlement benefits available to the class members. The Court decided that this the settlement appears to be fair and reasonable and that the case meets the requirements which govern class actions in Federal courts. Specifically, the Court found that: There are many people who may have had the same experience as Mr. Franke in relation to the access and use of their consumer reports by FLS in May 2010; There are legal questions and facts that are common to each of the persons in the Class; 3

4 The Class Representative s (Mr. Franke s) claims are typical of the claims of the rest of the members of the Class; The Class Representative and the lawyers representing the Class will fairly and adequately represent the Class interests; The common legal questions and facts are more important than questions that affect only individuals; and This class action will be more efficient than having many individual lawsuits in the courts. More information about why the Court is allowing this lawsuit to be a class action is in the Court s Order Certifying the Class, which is available at F. What does the lawsuit complain about? THE CLAIMS IN THE LAWSUIT In his lawsuit, Mr. Franke claims that FLS violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act. In specific, he claims that FLS violated the provisions of 15 U.S.C. 1681b(f) and 1681e(e) by accessing and using his consumer report without a legally permissible purpose. You can read the Plaintiffs Class Complaint at G. How did FLS answer? FLS denies that it did anything wrong and says that it did not know that the documents it accessed fell within the definition of a consumer report, and did not intend to violate the law. FLS claims it purchased lists that were offered to it as marketing materials and it had no notice that these lists were regulated or subject to permissible purpose requirements. FLS s Answer to the Class Complaint is also on the website at H. Has the Court decided who is right? The Court has not decided whether FLS or Mr. Franke is correct. The Parties have agreed to settle the case without having a final determination of the claims. The Court has also decided that the proposed settlement appears to be reasonable and fair under the circumstances and the settlement is preferable to a trial of the case under these circumstances. If you wish to have your case heard and have a court determine whether FLS is correct, you may opt out of this settlement and proceed to litigate your case. I. How do I know if I am part of this Class? WHO IS IN THE CLASS Judge Robert J. Jonker has certified a Class that includes all Michigan Residents whose consumer reports were accessed by FLS on a list provided in May In other words, you are a member of this Class if your name appears on the list and you are a Michigan resident. All fitting this description will participate in the class settlement unless they elect to opt out. J. What if I do not want to be a part of the Class? You may opt out. The settlement of the claims permits members of the Class to opt out of the Class. If you opt out, you will not receive any of the settlement benefits, and you will not be bound by the settlement. If you opt out, you may pursue your own claims or simply do nothing. K. What happens if I do nothing at all? You will remain as a member of the Class, be bound by the settlement, and receive the settlement benefits. People who do nothing will be included within the class settlement and will receive their share of the overall settlement. 4

5 L. What is the proposed settlement? THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT The Class will share in a total of $415, minus legally recoverable costs incurred by Mr. Franke in litigating the case, an incentive award of $5, and attorneys fees. This final recovery amount will be divided by the number of Class Claimants, and will be shared equally by them. The final amount of the checks are not yet known, but are estimated at $ M. What will I give up? You will be giving up your rights to sue FLS for any impermissible access or use of your consumer report. This includes any claims for actual, statutory, or punitive damages you may have suffered from either not receiving the notice at all, or not receiving the notice in the time allowed. N. Will I be waiving any other rights I might have against FLS? No. If you choose to participate in the Class, you will not be giving any other rights that you have or may acquire later. You keep those rights. If you have any other claims you wish to pursue later, you may pursue them on your own, with or without an attorney. O. What is Mr. Franke asking for now? Mr. Franke is asking that the Court approve the proposed settlement of the case. Mr. Franke has filed a motion asking the Court s permission to implement the settlement that was preliminarily approved for the Class. If the Court agrees, the case will be finally resolved and the settlement will be implemented. P. When will the settlement money be available? Settlement money will be available only if the Court approves the settlement. The Court has not yet decided whether to approve the settlement. If the Court approves the settlement, money will be disbursed approximately two months after the final approval. Those funds will be mailed by a third party administrator. Q. Do I have a lawyer in the case? THE LAWYERS REPRESENTING YOU Yes. The Court has appointed attorneys to represent the you and the rest of the members of the Class in this case for purposes of the settlement. These attorneys are known as Class Co-Counsel. You will not be charged directly for these attorneys, but they will be compensated out of the class recovery. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire an attorney at your own cost. Ian B. Lyngklip & Julie Petrik Lyngklip & Associates Consumer Law Center, P.L.C Northwestern Highway, # 206 Southfield, MI Telephone: (248) R. How much are the lawyers being paid? The lawyers will be requesting that the Court award them $115, or approximately 27.5% of the value of the class recovery. The fee that the lawyers actually receive is determined by the Court using standards that are established by law. The amount that the lawyers request is within the range of what other attorneys customarily request that courts award in class actions. EXCLUDING YOURSELF FROM THE SETTLEMENT S. What should I do if I do not want to participate in the settlement? Opt out and exclude yourself from the settlement. If you do not want to participate in this settlement, but you want to keep the right to sue Defendant over the legal issues involved in this case, then you must take steps 5

6 to remove yourself from the Settlement Class. The deadline for submitting exclusions is March 31, Any exclusions must be postmarked by that date to be effective. T. How do I opt out? If you wish to opt out you must send notice to the Class Administrator. The Class Administrator in this case will process any requests to opt out of the Class. You do not need to contact the Court or the Lawyers. If you wish to be excluded from the settlement, you must state in writing that you want to be excluded from the lawsuit identified as Franke v. FLS, Case No Your request to be excluded must include your name, address, social security or taxpayer identification number, telephone number, fax number (if any), and your signature. Send your request to: Franke v. FLS Settlement c/o Class Administrator P.O. Box 1387 Blue Bell, PA U. If I exclude myself, can I participate in the settlement? No. If you exclude yourself from the Class, you cannot participate in the settlement, you will not receive any check from FLS, and you will not be able to object to the settlement. Additionally, you will not be bound by anything that happens in this lawsuit or settlement. V. If I do not exclude myself, can I sue later? No. If you exclude yourself from the Class, you can sue FLS at a later time. Unless you exclude yourself, you will give up the right to sue FLS for all of the claims that this settlement resolves. You must exclude yourself from the Class to be able to initiate your own lawsuit. OBJECTING TO THE SETTLEMENT W. How do I tell the Court if I do not like the settlement? Notify the Court and the attorneys involved in the case. If you are a member of the Class and you do not exclude yourself, you may object to the settlement if you do not like any part of it. If you decide to object to the settlement, you should give your reasons why you think that the Court should not approve it. The Court will consider your views. To object, you must do so in writing. Within your objection, you must also include the name and number of this case Franke v. FLS, Case No and you must also include the following: 1) your name, 2) your address, 3) your telephone number, 4) your signature, and 5) the reasons why you object to the settlement, along with any documentation supporting your objection. Send your objection, if any, postmarked no later than March 31, 2015 to the following different places: THE COURT: CLASS CO-COUNSEL: United States District Court for the Ian B. Lyngklip, Esq. Western District of Michigan Lyngklip & Associates Consumer Law Center, P.L.C. 399 Federal Building Northwestern Highway, # 206 Grand Rapids, MI Southfield, MI DEFENDANT S COUNSEL: Frederick Mackraz The Mackraz Law Office PC 401 Hall Street SW, Suite 132 Grand Rapids, MI

7 X. What s the difference between objecting and excluding? Objecting means that you are telling the Court that you do not like something about the settlement. Excluding yourself means that you are telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Class. You can object only if you stay in the Class. If you exclude yourself, you cannot object to the settlement, or to any of its terms, including the provision for attorneys fees, because the Action no longer affects you. Y. What is a Fairness Hearing? THE COURT S FAIRNESS HEARING A hearing to determine whether the settlement is fair to the Class. The Court will hold a Fairness Hearing to decide whether the settlement is fair and whether to grant final approval to the settlement. You may attend, but you do not have to do so. You may also ask to speak at the Fairness Hearing, but you do not have to do so. Z. When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the settlement? The Court will hold a Fairness Hearing at 3:00 p.m. on May 22, 2015 at the United States District Court for the Western District of Michigan, Courtroom of the Honorable Robert J. Jonker, 399 Federal Building, Grand Rapids, MI At this Fairness Hearing, the Court will consider whether the settlement is fair, adequate, and reasonable. The Court will consider whether to approve the settlement, and whether to approve the request for attorneys fees, as well as the award for the Class Representative. If there are objections to the settlement, the Court will consider them at this time. The Fairness Hearing may be moved to a different time or date without additional notice, so it is a good idea to check with the Court for updated information if you intend to appear. Information about the hearing will also be posted on the website at AA. Do I have to come to the Fairness Hearing? No. You do not have to come to the Fairness Hearing. Class Counsel will answer any questions that the Court may have, but you are welcome to attend the hearing at your own expense. If you submit a written objection, you do not have to come to court to talk about it. As long as you submitted your written objection on time, and in the manner set forth above, the Court will consider it. If you hire your own attorney at your own expense, you may also pay your lawyer to attend, but this is not necessary. BB. What should I do if I want to speak at the Fairness Hearing? Write to the Court and the attorneys. In order to speak at the Fairness Hearing, you must send a letter, or other written document, stating that the letter or document is your Notice of Intention to Appear at the Fairness Hearing in Franke v. FLS, Case No In your letter or other written document, please be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, and signature. You must send your Notice of Intention to Appear to the addresses listed above in section W. Your Notice of Intention to Appear must be postmarked no later than March 31, The Court will decide if you will be allowed to speak at the Fairness Hearing. CC. Where can I get more information? INFORMATION ABOUT THE SUIT AND SETTLEMENT The lawyers in this case have set up a web site with more information or you can contact them directly. You can read the complaint, the answer and the proposed settlement agreement at If you need more information, you can contact the attorneys in this case who have been appointed to represent you and the other Class Members. Their names and contact information are listed above. DD. Should I contact the Court for more information? No. Neither the Court nor its staff can provide any additional information about the settlement. Neither the Court nor its staff can provide legal advice. If you need additional information you can contact the attorneys appointed to represent the Class or hire your own attorney. You may, however, contact the Court if you wish to object of the settlement. 7

8 Franke v. FLS Settlement c/o Class Administrator P.O. Box 1387 Blue Bell, PA IMPORTANT LEGAL INFORMATION 8