Plaintiffs v Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel
A Proposed National Settlement Has Been Reached In A Class Action Against Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel
A Proposed National Settlement Has Been Reached In A Class Action Proceeding Alleging That Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel's Use Of A Flat-Rate Early Termination Fee (ETF)
The Final Approval Hearing is presently scheduled for October 21, 2009.
A proposed national settlement has been reached in a class action proceeding alleging that Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel's use of a flat-rate early termination fee (ETF) in its customer wireless agreement violate the Federal Communications Act and consumer protection laws of the states and of the United States. The case is entitled Larson, et al. v. Sprint Nextel Corporation, et al., Civ. Action No. 2:07-cv-05325 (JLL-ES), and is pending in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, located at 50 Walnut Street, Newark, New Jersey.
On December 8, 2008, the Court preliminarily approved the Settlement Agreement and has conditionally certified a class (the Settlement Class), consisting of:
All Persons in the United States who are or were parties to a personal fixed-term subscriber agreement for a Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel Wireless Service Account for personal or mixed business/personal use, whether on the Sprint CDMA network or Nextel iDEN network, or both, excluding accounts for which the responsible party for the Wireless Service Account is a business, corporation or a governmental entity, entered into between July 1, 1999 and December 31, 2008 and whose claims relate in any way to an Early Termination Fee or use of an Early Termination Fee in a fixed-term subscriber agreement, and/or use or propriety of a fixed-term subscriber agreement whether the term was for the initial fixed-term subscriber agreement or subsequent extensions or renewals to the fixed-term subscriber agreement for whatever reason and/or who were charged by or paid an Early Termination Fee to Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel, excluding only the Ayyad Class Claims and Persons whose right to sue Sprint Nextel as a Settlement Class Member is otherwise barred by a prior settlement agreement and/or prior final adjudication on the merits. The Settlement Class includes Persons who were subject to an ETF, whether or not they paid any portion of the ETF either to Sprint, Nextel and/or Sprint Nextel or to any outside collection agency or at all, and includes persons who are prosecuting excluded claims to the extent such persons have claims other than those expressly excluded. Also excluded from the Class are members of the judiciary, Defendants, any entity in which they have a controlling interest, and their officers and directors, and the members of their immediate families are excluded.
Under the terms of the proposed settlement, Sprint Nextel has agreed to pay $14 million into a Common Fund. Sprint Nextel will also provide up to $3.5 million in Non-Cash Benefits. The Common Fund shall be distributed to Claimants after deduction of attorney's fees, incentive awards, and costs of notice and administration of the settlement. Under the settlement, Settlement Class Members submitting an Approved Claim will receive a choice of benefits, including either a full or pro rata distribution based upon a number of factors that are set forth in four (4) categories. Some of the factors are whether an ETF was paid, only charged and when the service agreement was terminated.
If you wish to participate in the settlement you may complete an electronic claim form by on clicking the menu to the left or receive a hard copy claim form in the mail by calling 1-800-916-6940 . The Claim Form must be filed electronically or postmarked no later than 60 days after the entry of the Final Approval Order and Judgment (the Final Approval hearing is currently scheduled for October 21, 2009; this date may change; please check back with this website for the most current information regarding the Final Approval hearing date or other deadlines.)
To exclude yourself from the Class and any benefits received by the Class, you must mail a Request for Exclusion Form, postmarked no later than October 7, 2009, to Sprint ETF Settlement Administrator, c/o Gilardi & Co. LLC, P.O. Box 6002, Larkspur, CA 94977-6002.
The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing, presently scheduled for October 21, 2009, to consider whether to approve the Settlement and the application for attorneys' fees and expenses. To object to the settlement, you or your attorney must file an objection with the Court by no later than October 7, 2009. The Court is located at 50 Walnut Street, Newark, New Jersey, and your objection should reference the following case name and docket number: Larson, et al. v. Sprint Nextel Corporation, et al., Civ. Action No. 2:07-cv-05325 (JLL-ES).
You must also send a copy of your objection to Class Counsel at Carella, Byrne, Bain, Gilfillan, Cecchi, Stewart & Olstein, Attn: Sprint ETF Settlement, 5 Becker Farm Road, Roseland, New Jersey 07068, and you or your attorney may appear at the Final Approval Hearing.
For additional information, including the settlement documents, you can contact the Claims Administrator via e-mail at claims@sprintetfsettlement.com. or by calling 1-800-916-6940.
You may also obtain additional information about the Settlement, and information about deadlines, by telephoning 1-800-916-6940, or writing the Sprint ETF Settlement Administrator, c/o Gilardi & Co., PO Box 6002, Larkspur, CA 94977-6002.
Important Dates:
Deadline to file a Request for Exclusion: October 7, 2009
Deadline to file an Objection: October 7, 2009
Deadline for objections or opposition solely to the fee applications: October 19, 2009
Final Approval Hearing: October 21, 2009
