Education & Resources Portal
Below are links to selected sources of information on class action settlements and claims filing:
Articles
Academic Research on Class Action Claims:
2024 Annual Antitrust Report: 2024 Antitrust Report - ssrn-5374409
2024 Securities Class Action Report: 2024 - Securities-Class-Action-Settlements-2024-Review-and-AnalysisÂ
Distribution of Funds in Class Actions—Claims Administration
Industry Research
Stanford Law School Securities Class Action Clearinghouse
Terminology
The following are some common terms used in class action settlements and claims filing:
Claims Administrator
The firm approved by the court to determine the eligibility and amount of claims and to distribute the settlement fund.
Claim Notice
A notice sent out by the claim's administrator that gives a history of the case and the context of why the case was settled.
Class Period
The court determined date range that establishes if you are eligible to file a claim. Normally, you need to have purchased or acquired a security or price-fixed product in question during this time frame.
Exclusion Deadline
The date by which an entity must opt out of the class in order to be able to directly file a lawsuit against the defendant.
Fairness Hearing
Process in which a judge reviews a proposed class action settlement to determine if the settlement is reasonable and just. This is also when the court reviews the request for attorney’s fees.
Filing Deadline
The date defined by the court for the filing of claims by class members. Any filing submitted after this date needs to be approved by the court.
Market Loss
The sum of the realized and unrealized loss during the time period covered by the settlement. This is not a class member’s total market loss for the security at issue, but rather the market loss as defined by the settlement’s plan of allocation.
Plan of Allocation
The court approved claim eligibility criteria, which is the foundation for determining the value of a claim through the calculation of recognized loss.
Proof of Claim Form
A notice that is distributed by the claim's administrator that instructs class members on the procedures of how to file an eligible claim.
Pro Rata Payout Percentage
The total amount of recognized losses of all accepted claims for a particular case divided by the total net settlement dollars available for distribution. Generally, the fewer entities that file claims, the greater the pro rata share of settlement money for those that do file claims.
Recognized Loss
The value of loss that is calculated based on applying the settlement rules described in each plan of allocation. This forms the basis for a claim’s distribution and is rarely equal to the actual economic loss. A recognized loss can oftentimes exist despite having an overall profit in the security.
Settlement Amount
The pool of funds to be distributed to the eligible class members as agreed upon by the defendant(s) and the representatives of the plaintiffs. These funds are allocated to class members based on the plan of allocation.