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This page contains new information about the Settlement that has been prepared since this site went live on January 22, 2010. Each new item will consist of the date it was inserted, the new information, and where else on the Web site (if anywhere) the information can be found.
August 26, 2010
NOTICE OF POSSIBLE UNANTICIPATED DELAY IN DISTRIBUTION OF AWARDS
This month, two members of the Settlement Classes filed Notices of Appeal: (1) John Keating, a member of the Aspiring Writers class, represented by the law firm of Kendrick & Nutley, Pasadena, California; and (2) Claudia Prada, a member of the Professional Writers Class, represented by the lawyer Howard Strong, Tarzana, California. CLICK HERE to view their Notices of Appeal.
The Notices of Appeal do not specifically identify the basis for Mr. Keating’s and Ms. Prada’s respective challenges. However, they are allowed to appeal only those elements of the settlement to which they filed timely objections during the approval process. If you wish to review their original objections, CLICK HERE.
The settlement does not become effective until these two appeals are resolved either by agreement or appellate decision. No money may be distributed from the settlement fund until the settlement becomes effective. Our Update of July 7, 2010 informed you that, “assuming no unforeseen delays,” we anticipated mailing notices of award amounts in September or early October. The filing of these notices of appeal is an “unforeseen delay.” Accordingly, at this time, and until these appeals are resolved, we cannot predict when notices of award amounts will be mailed.
We will keep you advised of developments as they occur concerning these notices of appeal.
July 7, 2010
IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL CLAIMANTS
FROM: PAUL SPRENGER, LEAD CLASS COUNSEL
RE: SETTLEMENT UPDATE
Dear Claimants:
On Thursday, June 24th, Judge Elias approved the proposed formula for distribution of awards and on July 1, 2010, entered detailed Findings of Fact and Order approving the formula. At the June 24 hearing she directed Lead Class Counsel to conduct an audit of various aspects of the distribution process. The Findings and Orders approving the formula and authorizing the audit entered June 24 and July 1, 2010, are available on this page dated July 1, 2010.
The audit will be completed in about 45 days. Award amounts will be mailed confidentially to claimants by the Claims Administrator when all awards and the court's orders and judgments are final, which will be about September 10, 2010. Claimants will receive a confidential notice stating the gross and net amounts of the award, including tax allocations (IRS forms W-2 and 1099 will be issued by the Claims Administrator reporting the award income and any required withholding). After receipt of the notice of award, claimants may request it be sent to them by returning the appropriate tax information and reporting forms to the Claims Administrator. (If a claimant operated through a "loan-out" company, it may be designated the appropriate corporate entity for the recipient of the award at that time.) Upon receipt by the Claims Administrator of the signed tax and acknowledgement of award forms, the distribution check will be mailed on a rolling basis within a week to 10 days. No individual awards will be paid until those forms are returned.
Assuming no unforeseen delays, the notification of the award amounts will be mailed in September or early October, 2010. You should continue to check the "Updates" tab of this website or at www.tvwriterssettlementadmin.com for scheduling changes and developments.
Thank you for your patience; on behalf of all 160 lawyers and legal assistants who worked on these cases, it has been our privilege to represent you.
Paul Sprenger
Lead Class Counsel, TV Writers' Age Discrimination Cases
July 6, 2010
CLICK HERE to view a Notice of Entry of the findings on the claim formula.
July 1, 2010
CLICK HERE to view the Court's minute order of June 24, 2010, granting the motion of Lead Class Counsel to approve a distribution formula and the Court's Findings of Fact and Order on Application for Approval of distribution formula of July 1, 2010.
Lead Class Counsel expects his audit directed by the Court in the orders to be completed in 45 to 60 days and, barring unforeseen delays, notifications of the amounts of monetary awards will be mailed to eligible claimants within 30 days thereafter. The Court, in a third order, has directed Lead Class Counsel to report on the status of distribution by November 5, 2010, by which time he anticipates all awards will have been received by eligible claimants.
June 27, 2010
CLICK HERE to access the court's order approving settlement and awarding attorneys' fees and reimbusement of expenses, together with its findings of fact and conclusions filed and entered on June 14, 2010, based on its hearing on June 9, 2010 on the motions of the parties.
June 19, 2010
CLICK HERE to access Notice of Entry of Order Regarding Good Faith Determination.
June 6, 2010
NOTICE OF MOTION TO APPROVE DISTRIBUTION FORMULA
From: Paul Sprenger, Lead Class Counsel
Re: Distribution Formula
Date: June 6, 2010.
CLICK HERE to access Class Counsel’s Notice of Motion and Motion for Approval of a Claim Formula, the supporting memorandum, the formula itself, and two supporting declarations. The motion is scheduled to be heard by Judge Elias on June 24, 2010, at 2:30 PM. If you wish, you may submit a written comment about the formula, ask to speak at the hearing, or attend the hearing. Any written comment or request to speak at the hearing should be forwarded to Lead Class Counsel at the addresses in the June 1 “update” below so that it is received by him not later than June 18. You do not need to comment or speak at the hearing, and doing so does not affect your eligibility for or the size of your award.
DO NOT SEND ANY SUBMISSION TO THE COURT.
JUNE 1, 2010
IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL CLAIMANTS
From: Paul Sprenger, Lead Class Counsel
Re: Continuance of Hearing on Formula
Date: June 1, 2010.
Judge Elias has tentatively re-scheduled the portion of the June 9th hearing to approve a formula for distribution to June 24 at 2:30 PM in her courtroom at the Los Angeles County Superior Court Building, 600 S.Commonwealth Blvd., Los Angeles, California. In light of this postponement, any suggestions, comments or other submissions concerning the motion to approve the formula should be sent to Lead Class Counsel to be received by him not later than June 18 at: Paul Sprenger, Sprenger and Lang Foundation Building, 1614 20th St NW, Washington, DC 20009 or via email at psprenger@SprengerandLang.com or fax 202-518-0228. Do not send any submission to the Court.
We expect that by Friday, June 4, Lead Class Counsel will file and post a motion for approval and a distribution formula with a memorandum supporting and explaining its application. Please check further updates on this website.
You do not need to appear on either June 9 or 24, and you do not need to submit anything in connection with the formula. You are invited to do so, if you wish. Your eligibilty for an award is not affected by whether you file comments or appear.
MAY 17, 2010
IMPORTANT NOTICE TO ALL CLAIMANTS
From: Paul Sprenger, Lead Class Counsel
Re: Final Approval Hearing
Date: May 17, 2010
Judge Elias granted approval to the Settlement at the hearing held on Friday May 14, 2010, overruling the 4 objections submitted to various aspects of the Settlement. The Court will issue written "Findings of
Fact, Conclusions of Law and Order" in due course, which will be posted when entered by the Court. Please note, however, that the Settlement remains subject to several contingencies that could still lead to it
being terminated pursuant to its terms notwithstanding Judge Elias' decision. The parties hope to resolve those remaining contingencies,
without terminating the settlement, within the next two weeks.
Please check back here for regular updates.
May 7, 2010
As of this date Class Counsel filed the Report of Lead Class Counsel re: (1) Compliance with Order Directing Notice and (2) Claimant and Non-claimant Comments, Requests to Appear, Objections and Opt-outs; Supporting Declarations: Lance Blair (Mailed Notice and Administration Statistics); Patricia McCarron (Published Notice); Barry Goldstein (Case Results) and Theodore Eisenberg, J.D. (Attorneys’ Fees). You may access this filing and all related filings of Class Counsel on this date in connection with the motions for final approval and reimbursement of fees and costs by CLICKING HERE.
April 28, 2010
As of this date the Claims Administrator has received and processed: 4,233 Claims consisting of 2,022 aspiring class claims and 2,211 professional class claims. 12 comments (positive suggestions and observations), 7 requests to address the court orally at final hearing (positive support), 4 objections and 22 requests for exclusions.
IMPORTANT DATE CHANGES: The Court has postponed the fairness hearing (to determine whether the Settlement should be finally approved) from May 5 to May 14, 2010 at 1:45pm.
The Court has also continued the scheduled hearing on the Settling Defendants’ Application for a Good Faith Settlement Determination from May 5 to May 14, 2010 at 1:45pm.
Accordingly, the postmark deadline to submit comments or objections concerning the Settlement is extended from April 14, 2010 to April 23, 2010.
These schedule changes DO NOT change the postmark deadlines to submit claims (April 13, 2010) or request exclusion from the Settlement (April 8, 2010).
April 16, 2010
Class Counsel has filed a motion for final approval of the settlements with supporting papers pursuant to leave of the Court. The motion and supporting declaration can be accessed by CLICKING HERE.
April 14, 2010
Class Counsel has filed a petition for approval of the request for reimbursement of out--of-pocket costs advanced and attorneys fees together with supporting papers pursuant to the terms of the Order Preliminarily Approving Settlement. A list of the moving papers and access to each is available by CLICKING HERE.
March 15, 2010
The following questions and answers were added to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) portion of this website:
FAQ 40: I am a WGA member. The Claim Form gives me the option of signing the privacy waiver and relying on the income information in the WGA's records, or filling out the table on page 15 of the Claim Form and providing evidence of my income during my high-earning years. Which should I do?
ANSWER: Class Counsel provides the following advice: Which option you should select depends on whether you believe the WGA’s records accurately reflect your television writing income, how difficult or easy it would be for you to remember and document your five highest earning years (from television writing) during the class period, and how much time you are willing to devote to filling out the Claim Form. For many class members, relying on the WGA data will be the best option, as it will save time and avoid the necessity of searching for additional supporting documentation. However, if you believe that the WGA records understate your income from television writing – because, for example, of the way you allocated your television writing income for dues purposes – it may be better for you to fill out the table and submit separate documentation, assuming you can do so.
FAQ 41: Will there be any means of checking to ensure that Claimants do not over-report income?
ANSWER: Class Counsel and the Trustees of the Qualified Settlement Fund, who will supervise the claim award calculation process, provide the following response: Yes. Garden City, the Claims Administrator, will examine the income information provided by each class member. Garden City will flag entries meeting certain criteria for further review and follow-up by Class Counsel and/or the Trustees to ensure that all of the claimed income is attributable to television writing income only. Class Counsel may contact you, as part of this process, for further clarification and/or require the submission of additional supporting documentation to validate your award.
FAQ 42: If I fill out the table on page 15 of the Claim Form (instead of relying on the income information in the WGA’s records), what income should I include?
ANSWER: Class Counsel provides the following advice: Your response should be limited to income derived from television writing (for example, story or teleplay fees/sales, weekly income, development deals). You should not include income from other writing pursuits, including feature film, plays, and novels. You will be affirming under penalty of perjury when you sign the Verification section of the Claim Form that, to the best of your knowledge, the income that you are reporting is derived from television writing only. If you cannot precisely separate your income from television writing from your other income in a particular year, you must make your best estimate of the amount of income attributable to television writing. If you do not explain the basis of your estimate on the form, you are likely to be called by a representative of Class Counsel for an explanation.
FAQ 43: I suffered health problems that I believe are attributable to age discrimination, but my health care provider is reluctant to submit any documentation, which is required under Section VIII of the Claim Form. What should I do?
ANSWER: We have prepared a letter that you may give to your health care provider that we hope will help. Please click here for a copy. If the health care provider still is reluctant to provide documentation, please remember that Section VIII allows other forms of substantiation. Section VIII specifically mentions insurance explanations of benefits, but depending on your medical condition, other forms of documentation may suffice, such as medical prescriptions.
IMPORTANT DEVELOPMENTS: The Producer-Writers Guild of America Pension Plan and the Writers’ Guild-Industry Health Fund (WGA PLANS) have agreed not to seek pension, health or welfare contributions on the settlement awards. The WGA West and WGA East have also agreed not to seek guild dues on the settlement awards.
April 6, 2010
The following amendment and additional question and answer were added to the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) portion of this Web site:
FAQ 19 was amended to reflect that the amount of money you are likely to receive under the award distribution formula will not be subject up to the 15% deduction for government regulated union pension, health and welfare plans. The FAQ and the amendment are set out here and immediately after the original answer.
FAQ 19. How much money am I likely to receive under the formula?
ANSWER: The amount of each award cannot be determined at this time. The amount will vary based on individual circumstances and the number of valid claims submitted. The minimum award for a valid claim is $250 ($400 if the claimant waives his or her right to participate in the Fund for the Future, see instructions in claim form for more details).
The claims administrator will also calculate and withhold applicable state and federal payroll and other taxes on the award. The claims administrator will set aside a reserve to protect against a claim by any taxing authority that insufficient taxes were withheld by the claims administrator.
Additionally, some or all of your award may be subject to a collective bargaining agreement requirement to contribute up to 15% to government- regulated union pension, health and welfare plans. If awards are made before it is determined whether your award is subject to pension, health and welfare contributions, the claims administrator will establish a reserve to pay any contributions and related expenses that are ultimately found due.
Update: The Producer-Writers Guild of America Pension Plan and the Writers’ Guild-Industry Health Fund have agreed not to seek pension, health or welfare contributions on the settlement awards. (You can read a copy of the letter confirming the Plans’ position by CLICKING HERE.) Since no contributions are due, the administrator will not make any deductions from awards or establish a reserve for that purpose.
FAQ 44: By Court Order, the date of the final approval hearing
has been reset from May 5 to May 14. Does everything else remain the same pursuant to the Order?
ANSWER: The postmark deadline for filing claims remains April 13, 2010 and the postmark deadline for requesting exclusion from the Settlement remains April 8, 2010. However, the postmark deadline for filing comments or objections, which was tied to the date of the final approval hearing, has been postponed to April 23, 2010. You may read the Order by clicking here.
