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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 website (if anywhere) the information can be found.

 

April 22, 2011

 

COURT ENTERS ORDER APPROVING ADJUSTED AWARDS AFTER CHALLENGE PROCESS.

 

The Court entered Findings and Order Approving Lead Class Counsel’s Recommendations on Claimant Challenges on April 18, 2001, which can be accessed by CLICKING HERE. The addenda referred to in the Order were lodged with the Court and returned to Lead Class Counsel as protected private information of the claimants. The Claims Administrator will now mail Notices of Award (or Ineligibility) and tax forms to each challenging claimant, or a Notice of Award with a check for the relatively few challenging claimants who already have submitted their tax forms. Challenging claimants should receive their Notices of Award (or Ineligibility) and tax forms or check by April 29, 2011 (if not received, please so inform us).

 

April 19, 2011

 

LEAD CLASS COUNSEL FILES REPORT ON DISTRIBUTION

 

COURT APPROVES AWARDS AFTER CHALLENGE REVIEW

 

On April 18, 2011, the Court informed Class Counsel that it will enter an Order approving revised awards to those claimants who challenged the calculations of their original awards. As provided in the settlement documents, this was the final review; no further appeal is permitted.

 

We anticipate that the Claims Administrator will send revised notices of awards and tax forms to each of the challengers promptly after receipt of the written order, which Lead Class Counsel expects by April 22, 2011. Upon return of the completed, signed forms to the Claims Administrator, the award checks will be mailed within seven business days.

 

Class Counsel's report on distribution can be accessed by CLICKING HERE.

 

April 6, 2011

UPDATE ON AWARD CHALLENGE REVIEW PROCESS

 

After a labor-intensive review of nearly 10,000 pages of documentation, Class Counsel completed analysis of all 270 award challenges. Class counsel submitted its recommendations regarding challenges to the Court on April 4, 2011. The Court must now review and act on these recommendations.

Once the Court approves or amends these recommendations, notice of the decision will be posted to this website, and challengers will be notified via U.S. mail within 10 days of the posting regarding the result of their challenge. If the Court has not reached a decision on or before April 18, 2011, an update to that effect will be posted on this website on April 19, 2011.

 

February 18, 2011

 

As of Wednesday, February 16, 2011, the Claims Administrator had received 3,374 W-9s from the 4,254 claimants adjudged entitled to awards. Class Counsel had received 227 challenges from claimants adjudged entitled to awards and 26 challenges from claimants adjudged not entitled to awards. 627 claimants adjudged entitled to awards had not yet submitted either a W-9 or a challenge form.

 

To date, the Claims Administrator has mailed 3,046 checks. The Claims Administrator intends to issue checks on or before February 18th to all individuals whose valid W-9 forms were received on or before February 15th.

 

The last timely challenge was received on February 15, 2010.

 

Under Administrative Order No. 5, Lead Class Counsel has 40 days – until March 28, 2010 – to submit his recommendations to the Court concerning each of them.

 

Because we are now in the period for evaluating challenges instead of assisting claimants in evaluating whether to file them, beyond acknowledging receipt, we will not respond to communications concerning the challenges.

 

February 9, 2011

 

As of Tuesday, February 8, 2011, the Claims Administrator had received 3,309 W-9s from the 4,254 claimants adjudged entitled to awards. Class Counsel had received 127 challenges from claimants adjudged entitled to awards and 15 challenges from claimants adjudged not entitled to awards. 819 claimants adjudged entitled to awards had not yet submitted either a W-9 or a challenge form.
To date, the Claims Administrator has mailed 2,832 checks. The Claims Administrator intends to issue checks on or before February 11th to all individuals whose valid W-9 forms were received on or before February 8th.

We intend to post a similar update on February 16th as well so that claimants may keep abreast of the numbers of W-9s and challenges submitted and the number of checks mailed.

 

FEBRUARY 7, 2011

IMPORTANT REMINDER OF DEADLINE

Class Counsel reminds claimants that, if they are challenging their award, the deadline is fast approaching. Claimants who challenge must file using the form provided with their award notice packet and it MUST BE POSTMARKED BY FEBRUARY 10, 2011.

Challenges may NOT be e-mailed and NO EXTENSIONS OF TIME will be granted.

If you need a challenge form, you can download it by CLICKING HERE.

We will endeavor to return all phone calls and e-mails from claimants but we cannot assure that calls and e-mails received after February 8th will be returned before the February 10th deadline. Whether or not you receive a return phone call or e-mail, no exceptions will be made for late challenges.

While you await a response, you may find it helpful to review the recently updated Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) portion of the Class Counsel website, with new information about the Awards Allocations Process. CLICK HERE to review the FAQ section.

 

FEBRUARY 2, 2011

As of Monday, January 31, 2011, the Claims Administrator had received 2,986 W-9s from the 4,254 claimants adjudged entitled to awards. Class Counsel had received 79 challenges from claimants adjudged entitled to awards and 10 challenges from claimants adjudged not entitled to awards. 1,189 claimants adjudged entitled to awards had not yet submitted either a W-9 or a challenge form.

The Claims Administrator mailed 1,205 checks on January 28, 2011, and an additional 476 checks on January 31, 2011. The Claims Administrator anticipates that it will be mailing approximately 1,100 checks later this week.

We intend to post similar updates on February 9 and 16 as well so that claimants may keep abreast of the numbers of W-9s and challenges submitted and the number of checks mailed.

 

JANUARY 23, 2011

UPDATES TO FAQ PAGE

New information has been posted on the Frequently Asked Questions page of this website regarding the Award Allocations Process. To access this information, you may CLICK HERE.

JANUARY 11, 2011

MAILING OF AWARD NOTIFICATION LETTERS

Lead Class Counsel is happy to announce that yesterday the Claims Administrator, Garden City Group (located in Seattle, Washington), mailed three documents to each eligible claimant: a Notice of Award, a Substitute IRS Form W-9, and a Challenge Form for Claimants Receiving Awards. Click here to view copies of each of these forms. The Court has, by Order, approved the gross amount of each award and the allocation of each award among wages, agency claims and interest on November 5, 2010.

 

As explained in more detail in the Notice of Award, each claimant has four options at this time:

* A claimant may accept the award by completing and returning the Substitute IRS Form W-9 to Garden City Group. It will mail a check in the amount of the net award within seven business days of receipt of the completed W-9. Do NOT use a version of the W-9 that is downloaded from this website because the bar code on the form sent to you has been individually bar coded;

 

* A claimant may change the payee’s name;

 

* A claimant may challenge the amount of his or her award by completing the Challenge Form; or

 

* A claimant may request a breakdown of the points awarded for each question in order to decide whether to accept or challenge the award.

The forms contain more information about each of the options, and we urge you to read them before contacting Class Counsel with any questions or issues. Exercise of any of the options other than accepting the award inevitably will delay payment of the net amount of your award.

 

For your convenience, you also may click here for the IRS’s instructions about completion of a W-9 form. We hope that the form that has been sent is self-explanatory so that no claimant needs to consult the IRS instructions.

 

The Claims Administrator also mailed yesterday a Notice that Claimant Is Not Entitled to an Award and a Challenge Form for Claimants Not Receiving Awards to all claimants whose names appeared on a list of claimants ineligible for an award pursuant to Court Order of November 5, 2010. The bases for ineligibility were that the claim forms were defective and the defects were not cured despite notice from Garden City Group, or that the claim forms were untimely. The Notice explains the options for ineligible claimants.

 

Please wait until January 17 before asking Garden City Group to send a replacement in the unlikely event that your notification packet has not been delivered.

 

We thank you for your patience over the past few months while all of the pre-award processes were completed.

 

DECEMBER 29, 2010

MAILING OF NOTICES OF AWARDS

Class Counsel expects that the Claims Administrator will be able to mail award notification letters to all claimants in the Television Writers Settlement via U.S. Postal Mail on Monday, January 10, 2011. At that time, a copy of the forms and information provided with the Notice of Awards will also be made available via the websites. No other means for sending or receiving individualized award information is authorized except the U.S. Postal Service.

 

There are still several issues to finalize, and the January 10 date may need to be changed. If the date of mailing the Notice changes, class members will informed via this website.

Almost all questions will be answered in the Notification letters and thus Class Counsel asks that members of the class not pose questions about the distribution process until the award letters are received. If there are questions after reading your award information, please follow the procedures set forth in the notification letters.

 

The Court has also asked Class Counsel to remind members of the class that it cannot respond to communications from any individual class members or claimants.

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT DIRECTLY.

 

 

DECEMBER 5, 2010

ORDER ON EFFECTIVE DATE

On Friday, December 3, 2010, Judge Elias issued an Order resolving the dispute over the "Effective Date" of the settlement. The Effective Date is the date on which the settlement becomes fully effective, allowing awards to be distributed to eligible claimants.

Pursuant to the Judge's Order, the Effective Date is scheduled to occur on January 10, 2011. The Order also provides that the settlement funds to be distributed will be transferred the next day to accounts under Plaintiffs' counsels' sole control.

Although Lead Class Counsel argued that the Effective Date should have been earlier, he welcomes resolution of the issue. This should eliminate the last significant obstacle in the way of finally ending the litigation, issuing Notices of Awards, and making payments to eligible claimants.

Lead Class Counsel expects to issue Notices of Awards the first week of January 2011. As those notices will explain in more detail, claimants will have three choices: (1) sign an accompanying tax form and return it to the Claims Administrator, with claimants being paid within approximately seven days after the Administrator's receipt of the forms; (2) challenge the award; or (3) request additional information about how the award was calculated in order to decide whether to accept it or challenge it. Under this schedule, claimants who promptly accept their awards by signing and returning the tax forms will receive their awards in mid-January.

We will post on this site when the notices of award ultimately will be mailed once they are finalized.

 

NOVEMBER 30, 2010

 

HEARING ON EFFECTIVE DATE

 

Our Update of November 16, 2010, informed you that the parties have a dispute over the “Effective Date.” Plaintiffs believe that an Order entered by the Court on November 5, 2010, correctly held that the Effective Date would occur once the two appeals were abandoned or dismissed. Defendants believe that the Order is inconsistent with the terms of the Settlement, and that the Effective Date will not occur before January 11, 2011, at the earliest. The Effective Date is critical because the Trustee of the Settlement Fund appointed by the Defendants will not transfer control over the Settlement Fund, and distributions to claimants cannot occur, until the Effective Date has passed.

 

The Update also informed you that the parties were trying to negotiate a resolution and, if not, the Court would conduct a hearing on the issue on December 1. We regret to inform you that, despite many communications, the parties were unable to resolve the issue, and a hearing will be necessary.

 

That hearing will not occur on December 1. It is now scheduled for December 3, 2010, at 11:00 a.m. PST. That hearing also may need to be canceled. We will post an update to let you know whether the hearing will occur no later than the morning of December 2, 2010.

 

NOVEMBER 16, 2010

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS

 

Our update of November 5, 2010 stated that the Effective Date (the date when the settlement becomes “effective”) would occur as soon as the two appeals were dismissed by the Court of Appeal, presumably November 10th. This was based on the court's order on November 5th. Based on that order, we expected to disseminate award notices promptly after November 10th. We also planned to send awards to claimants who returned the tax form accompanying the award notice about a week later.

 

On Wednesday, November 10, however, Defendants advised Plaintiffs of an inconsistency they believe may exist between the Court’s Order of November 5 and prior orders regarding the date of the Effective Date. Lead Class Counsel does not believe there is any inconsistency.

 

All of the Trustees of Settlement Fund II (the Trustees of the account holding the settlement funds) must agree to any transfer of funds from Settlement Fund II. The Trustee of Settlement Fund II selected by the Defendants, however, has refused to transfer the funds absent (a) the agreement of all parties that the Effective Date has occurred, or (b) a final judicial order confirming that no inconsistency exists and that the Effective Date has occurred. Without the money, claimants cannot be paid.

 

Lead Class Counsel presented the issue to the Court on November 12, 2010, but the Court declined to rule at that time. Instead, the Court set a hearing for the matter on December 1, 2010, but urged the parties to settle the issue before then if possible.

 

Lead Class Counsel is actively discussing the matter with Defendants to see if an agreement can be reached.

 

We know how frustrating this will be to you, especially as it follows the unexpected delay in disseminating the awards caused by the appeals. Although it is small consolation, please be assured that we are doing all that we can to expedite distribution.

 

Please keep checking the website. The situation is fluid and can change quickly.

 

NOVEMBER 5, 2010

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS

 

Judge Emilie Elias today approved the settlements with the two appellants in the TV Writers Cases. These settlements provide some of the basic rules that will govern the Fund for the Future procedures – you can read them in the Implementation Order. Counsel for both appellants will petition the Court for an award of attorneys’ fees. Appellants will not receive any increase or decrease in their awards. The Court also approved the list of awards for all eligible claimants, based on the previously approved formula, with an average annual income cap of $600,000. These orders pave the way for the Effective Date, which will occur as soon as the appeals are dismissed by the Court of Appeal. We will inform you when that has occurred and will give you more details at that time about the schedule for award notices.

 

Click here for access to documents signed at the hearing on November 5, 2010.

 

NOVEMBER 4, 2010

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS

Click here for access to documents pertaining to the hearing on November 5, 2010.

 

NOVEMBER 3, 2010

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS

 

Judge Elias has scheduled a hearing at 9:00 a.m. on Friday, November 5, to consider the report submitted by Lead Class Counsel concerning distribution and developments since July 1, 2010, as well as approval of the appellants’ settlement allowing notification letters of final awards to be mailed. The hearing is open to the public. All the documents will be posted tomorrow. The hearing will be held in her courtroom at the Los Angeles Superior Courts Building,  600 S. Commonwealth Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90005.

 

OCTOBER 17, 2010

 

IMPORTANT NOTICE TO CLAIMANTS

 

STATUS REPORT ON CLAIMS PROCESS AND DISTRIBUTION (OBJECTIONS SETTLED)

 

The pending appeals of objectors John Keating and Claudia Prada have been settled. The settlement is subject to approval first by the Court of Appeal and then by Superior Court Judge Emilie Elias. Following the dismissal of the appeals and court approvals, including Judge Elias’ approval of the final awards distribution list, the Effective Date of the TV Writers Settlement will occur. This will allow us to notify claimants of the amount of their awards and distribute awards to eligible claimants. We are asking the Courts to act with deliberate speed to enable Class Counsel to notify all claimants of award decisions promptly. The settlement with the objector/appellants does not modify or amend the Settlement Agreements or any related Orders. Nor does it reduce or increase the amount of the award to anyone under the distribution formula ordered by the Court. The settlement addresses the implementing procedures of the Fund for the Future. The court filings regarding this settlement will be posted on this website as soon as they are complete.

 

Class Counsel will arrange with the Claims Administrator to mail notices of award amounts to eligible claimants as soon as feasible after the Effective Date.

 

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.

 

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).

 

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 website: 

 

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.