A 6 million dollar settlement has been proposed in the Walgreens Wal-Born settlement lawsuit.  The case dates back to 2010 and is entitled Federal Trade Commission v. Walgreen Co.  The lawsuit claims that Walgreens deceptively advertised that its Wal-Born supplement line could effectively prevent colds, fight germs and boost the immune system.  The problem with these claims is that there was not any scientific evidence or proof that the Wal-Born products actually prevented or treated cold or flu symptoms.  If you or someone you know purchased a Wal-Born product between the dates of December 1, 2004 and March 29, 2010 you might be entitled to a settlement refund.  A class member can submit up to 6 refunds at a payment of $5.00 for each return.  If you submit 6 refunds you should get a $30 payment no later than April of 2013.  All claim forms must be submitted by February 4, 2013 in order to be eligible for a refund.  The Federal Trade Commission is considered the class counsel in the case.

WalgreensRedressProgram.com allows a user to file a claim online and requires a valid email address.  You will also be required to create a password in order to file a claim online.  The password must be 6-8 characters long and must contain at least 1 upper alpha character, at least 1 lower alpha character, at least 1 number and at least 1 special character.  Please note claims can be filed by mail instead of online.  Simply print the claim form here and mail it to:

FTC v Walgreens
Claims Administration Center
P.O. Box 2517
Faribault, MN 55021-9517

In order to qualify for a settlement refund you must not have received a refund from Walgreens as part of another settlement.  Please do not contact Walgreens about the lawsuit.  All questions or concerns can be directed to 1-800-598-3025.

www.WalgreensRedressProgram.com

AstraZeneca has agreed to an $11 million class action lawsuit settlement over claims that AstraZeneca filed lawsuits and patent filings against the competition in order to keep the market clear of any generic forms of the prescription drug Toprol XL.  Class member contend that these actions violated federal and state antitrust laws and consumer protection laws by keeping a lower cost alternative of the shelves.  The case is entitled Metoprolol Succinate End-Payor Antitrust Litigation and is in the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the District of Delaware.  Class members in the case are defined as anyone who purchased Toprol XL or its generic equivalent metoprolol succinate between the dates of May 5, 2005 through September 27, 2012.  Please note that if your co-payment amounts for Toprol XL and its generic were the same, you are not considered a class member in the Toprol XL Class Action Settlement.  The amount any one class member will receive will be based upon how many people file claims and how much the class member spent on the purchase of the drug.  ToprolSettlement.com provides more information about the case as well as the claim form and other court related documents.  You do not have to hire your own lawyer as the court has already appointed the law firms of KESSLER TOPAZ MELTZER & CHECK; FINE, KAPLAN AND BLACK; and POMERANTZ GROSSMAN HUFFORD DAHL to represant class members.

Important dates in the case include April 1, 2013 and March 7, 2013.  All claim forms MUST be filed no later than 04/01/13 in order to receive a possible settlement payment.  A settlement fairness hearing will be held on 03/07/13 at 1pm to determine the final outcome of the settlement.  The hearing will be held at J. Caleb Boggs Federal Building, 844 N. King Street, Unit 18, Wilmington, Delaware 19801-3570 if you wish to attend.  If you would like more information about the case please see the website below or write to: Consumer Settlement, PO Box 2807, Faribault, MN 55021-8612, or call the Settlement Administrator at 1-877-854-3273.  AstraZeneca will think twice about using shady tactics to drive out the competition in the future.

www.ToprolSettlement.com

Text class action lawsuits are becoming far to common.  More companies are attempting to use unauthorized text messages to promote their products.  If you or someone you know received a text promoting Steve Madden products or events between the time of July 2010 until September 25, 2012 you might be a part of the Steve Madden Text Class Settlement.  The lawsuit is entitled Ellison v. Steven Madden, Ltd., U.S. and is in the jurisdiction of the District Court for the Central District of California.  The lawsuit claims that Madden violated the Telephone Consumer Protection Act when they sent unsolicited text messages to customers promoting Steve Madden’s fashion products and promotional events.  Madden has agreed to a 10 million dollar settlement even though they deny are actions of wrong doing.  A class member might be entitled to a $150 settlement check if they file a valid claim form before April 11 2013.  Please note that the settlement is still pending a fairness hearing that will take place on February 25, 2013.  This hearing will determine if the settlement is fair to the class members.  The hearing will take place at Courtroom 880 of the Edward R. Roybal Federal Building and United States Courthouse, 255 East Temple Street, Los Angeles, CA 90012-3332.  A class member can obtain the claim form and other court related documents at MaddenTextSettlement.net.

In addition to the $10 million proposed settlement Madden has also agreed to stop sending unsolicited text messages.  Who would of thought receiving a text message could be worth $150?!?  Examples of the text messages that were sent by the company include:

“Psst… Hey Steve Madden Fan! Our Friends & Family promotion starts today!!! Use promo code SMFRIENDS at checkout and receive 25% off of your purchase. Shop right from your phone: http://bit.ly/SM_FRIENDS Don’t forget to pass it on… (Select exclusions apply) *Please note: Our text number is changing – future Steve Madden mobile updates will be coming from MADDEN (623336). Be sure to save this to your contacts. Reply HELP for help, reply STOP to cancel. Msg&Data rates may apply”

and

“Hello from Steve Madden! Good news! We are offering free shipping on all orders on our website. Ship, ship, hooray! Use code HOLYSHIP at checkout. Shop right from your phone!: http://bit.ly/SMFreeShip Offer good through Monday, May 30th. Online only. Valid only within the 48 contiguous US addresses. Excludes Clearance Items & Gift Cards. Spread the good word and enjoy the holiday weekend! Welcome to the new MADDEN short code! Just a reminder that you will continue to receive messages from ‘MADDEN’ (623336) instead of ‘91919’. Please save this short code into your contacts. Reply HELP for help, reply STOP to cancel. Msg&Data rates may apply.”

The court has appointed Jay Edelson of Edelson McGuire, LLC to represent class members.  Steve Madden is a popular footwear company for women & men.  The company was founded in 1990 and is based out of Long Island New York.

www.MaddenTextSettlement.net 

If you made a purchase online with Pro Flowers, Red Envelope, Cherry Moon Farms, Secret Spoon or Shari’s Berries and were enrolled one of the following Membership Programs: EasySaver Rewards, RedEnvelope Rewards or Preferred Buyers Pass, you might be entitled to a $20 credit and a cash refund under the settlement terms of EasySaver Rewards Litigation.  This is case number 3:09-cv-02094-AJB out of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.  The lawsuit claims that the Membership Programs charged them fees after making a purchase without obtaining the proper consent or knowledge of the customer.  Class member also state that these actions violated the California’s Consumers Legal Remedies Act, California’s Unfair Competition Law and the federal Electronic Fund Transfer Act.  A 12.5 million dollar settlement fund has been developed despite the fact the The Defendants deny any and all actions of wrong doing.  The websites in question in which the purchases were made include: ProFlowers.com, RedEnvelope.com, CherryMoonFarms.com, SecretSpoon.com and Berries.com.  A class member must file a claim in order to receive a cash settlement.  MembershipProgramSettlement.com defines a class member as anyone who placed an order with a website operated by Provide Commerce, Inc. and were then enrolled in one of the membership programs between the dates of August 19, 2005 and June 26, 2012.  This is not the first or last time we will see a lawsuit revolving around a questionable membership program.

All class member have until December 10, 2012 to file a claim form.  The claim form can be submitted online or by mail.  A settlement fairness hearing will be held January 25, 2013 at 1:30 p.m to determine if the previous mentioned settlement terms are fair to the class members.  The hearing will be held before Judge Anthony J. Battaglia at 940 Front Street, San Diego, CA 92101 in Courtroom 12.  You do not have to attend the hearing in order to take part in the settlement.  Class members will be represented by James R. Patterson, Bruce W. Steckler, Jennie Lee Anderson and Michael D. Singer.

www.MembershipProgramSettlement.com

A settlement cash payment of $50 or $100 could be yours if you enrolled in a a credit protection plan from Bank of America between January 1, 2006 to July 17, 2012.  This lawsuit is entitled Bank of America Credit Protection Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation and is Case Number 3:11-md-02269-TEH.  The lawsuit claims that BOA used the credit protection plan in question to dupe customers into paying for useless credit-protection services.  Imagine paying for a protection plan that really was not needed.  The defendants in the case include Bank of America Corp. and FIA Card Services, N.A.  Class members are represented by Rachel Geman, Esq. from LIEFF CABRASER HEIMANN & BERNSTEIN, LLP.  The case will ib in the jurisdiction of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California.  The BOA Credit Protection Class Action Lawsuit also claims unlawful practices regarding BOA marketing, sales, and administration of the Credit Protection products.  The lawsuit includes anyone who signed up for the following credit protection programs in the US:  Credit Protection Plus, Cardholder Security Plan, Credit Protection Plan, Credit Protection Deluxe and the Credit Protection Fleet.

In order to receive a settlement you must file a claim.  All claim forms can be mailed to: Bank of America Class Action Administrator, c/o Gilardi & Co. LLC, P.O. Box 8060, San Rafael, CA 94912-8060.  CreditProtectionSettlement.com allows a class member to file the claim online or download the claim form for mailing.  If you are a class member who made a Credit Protection benefit request that was denied your settlement payment will be approximately $100.00.  If you are a Class member Who have not made a Credit Protection benefit request you may receive approximately $50.00.  These settlement payments are pending a settlement fairness hearing.  The fairness hearing will be held before Judge Thelton E. Henderson on January 14, 2013 at 10:00 a.m.  The hearing will be held at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California and will determine if the settlement terms are fair and reasonable.

This is just one of numerous class action lawsuits that have been filed against credit card companies in the last few years.  Credit companies have been under fire as of late for rate manipulation, unfair fees and changing reward programs without notice.  Only time will if the consumer can defeat the evil credit card companies.  In the case of the BOA Credit Protection Class Action Lawsuit; consumers 1 credit company 0.

www.CreditProtectionSettlement.com

Organic milk is the subject of today’s class action lawsuit entitled In Re: Aurora Dairy Corp. Organic Milk Marketing and Sales Practices Litigation in the jurisdiction of the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse.  The lawsuit claims that Aurora’s organic milk used deceptive methods when advertising organic milk and duped customers into paying more for this milk due to these methods.  The labeling of the Aurora organic milk displayed happy cows grazing in a plush pasture on farms when in all actuality the cows were “the animals were living short, stressful lives being forced to produce copious quantities of milk in the kind of filthy industrial conditions that organic consumers thought they were avoiding” via the class action lawsuit.  The following organic milk brands have been named in this lawsuit: Aurora Organic Dairy’s “High Meadow”, Costco’s “Kirkland”, Wild Oats’, Wal-Mart’s “Great Value”,  Target’s “Archer Farms” and Safeway’s “Safeway Select” and “O Organics” brands.  It should be noted that the milk in questions was certified as organic by a USDA-accredited certifying agency.  Class members in this lawsuit include anyone who purchased one of the milk products in question anytime before September 14, 2012.  OrganicMilkMarketingSettlement.com provides the claim form and other court documents.  Settlement payouts for class members who file timely claims will be between $10 to $30.  Claim forms must be filed no later than March 13, 2013 in order to receive settlement compensation.

A settlement fairness hearing will be held on February 26, 2013 at 9:00 a.m. to determine if the settlement is fair among other issues.  The hearing will be held at 111 South 10th Street, St. Louis, MO 63102 at the Thomas F. Eagleton U.S. Courthouse.  If you don’t have a printer you can request a claim form by making a written request by mail to: Aurora Organic Dairy Litigation Settlement, c/o Gilardi & Co. LLC, P.O. Box 808003, Petaluma, CA 94975-8003.  If you are a class member and fail to file a claim you will not reap any benefits under these settlement terms.  The Aurora Organic Dairy Litigation Settlement will conclude 19 separate class action lawsuits filed in 2007.  The moral of this lawsuit is don’t show happy cows on your product when the cows are anything but happy.

www.OrganicMilkMarketingSettlement.com

A class action lawsuit settlement has been reached in Lewis v. City of Chicago that instructs the city of Chicago to hire 111 African-American class members as candidate firefighters and distribute back pay in equal shares among the eligible class members who were not hired as one of the 111.  The lawsuit is in the jurisdiction of United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division and is entitled Arthur Lewis, Jr., et al. v. City of Chicago,case number 98 C 5596.  Class member include anyone who was African American, took the 1995 Chicago Firefighter Examination, scored between between 65 and 88 and as a result was denied to the next steps in the hiring process.  A class member also must have not been hired as one of the 111 firefighter/EMT positions in March or April of 2012.  If your a class member in this case and would like to file a claim please do so no later than NOVEMBER 3, 2012.  If you are a class member and do nothing you will receive no monetary award from this the Lewis v. City of Chicago lawsuit.  ChicagoFirefightersClassAction.com provides the claim form and other court related documents.

If you qualify as a class member it is estimated all settlement payment should arrive by Christmas and be in the amount of $5,000 per member… this would make a lovely Christmas present for many African Americans who were denied jobs.  Class members are be represented by the counsel of Joshua Karsh and Matthew Piers from Hughes Socol Piers Resnick & Dym, Ltd.  Any questions can be directed to the lawyers at 70 West Madison Street, Suite 4000, Chicago, IL 60602.  To submit a claim online please have your Claim ID (which can be located on your class notice and claim form, LEWxxxxxx).  If you are having trouble or need help submitting the claim please dial 1-855-796-7874.

www.ChicagoFirefightersClassAction.com

If you shopped at a Bed Bath & Beyond store in the state of California between the dates of January 1, 2011 and January 14, 2011 and used your credit card to make the purchase you rights might be effected by the Bed Bath & Beyond Zip Code Class Action Settlement.  The lawsuit claims that BBB violated California law by requesting and recording personal identification information, including, but not limited to, home ZIP codes, of BBB customers who paid for merchandise in a California Bed Bath & Beyond store using a credit card.  The lawsuit cites  California Civil Code section 1747.08 and is entitled Barbara Salmonson v. Bed Bath & Beyond, Inc..  Bed Bath & Beyond denies all wrong doing byut has agreed to settlement terms to avoid a lengthy trial bu jury.  Class members in the case will be represented by the law firm of Schreiber & Schreiber, Inc.  A settlement hearing will take place on January 28, 2013 at the United States District Court for the Central District of California.  The courthouse is located at 312 N. Spring Street, Los Angeles, California 90012.

Enough about the lawsuit… lets discuss the proposed settlement.  Under the current settlement terms class members are able to pick between two settlement offers.  1.)  $7 BBB gift card, or (2) a BBB discount certificate for 15% off any purchase up to $250.  We suggest class member take the 15$ off coupon if making a large purchase.  If a class member is making a smaller purchase go with the gift card.  All claims must be filed by 11/07/12 in order to obtain any of the settlement offers.  The claim form can be found at bbbzipcodesettlement.com or filed online at the same website.  All questions can be directed to SCHREIBER & SCHREIBER, INC., ATTN: BED BATH & BEYOND ZIP CODE SETTLEMENT, 16501 Ventura Blvd., Suite 401, Encino, California 91436.   This lawsuit is in the jurisdiction of the Central District of California.  Hopefully eligible class members will receive the gift card/coupon before the Christmas shopping season.

www.bbbzipcodesettlement.com

A $3 million class action settlement has been proposed in Smith v. NCG Class Action Settlement.  This lawsuit revolves around claims that American Corrective Counseling Services and National Corrective Group forced California and Pennsylvania residents  into paying for “Financial Accountability” in relation to a bad check program.  ACCS and NCG would mail notices to customers who wrote bad checks to attend a “Financial Accountability” class at a costly fee.  Customers who didn’t pay class fee were threatened with criminal prosecution.  The case is in the jurisdiction of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California and is case number 3:10-CV-0010 JSW.  If you or someone you know received a notice from a bad check restitution program associated with the defendants between January 25, 2004 and August 31, 2011 you might be a class member of this lawsuit and might be entitled to a settlement payment.  Class Members will receive $75 cash pending the fairness hearing.  The final approval hearing is set for November 16, 2012 at 9:00 a.m. on November 16, 2012 in Courtroom 11, 19th Floor.  The courthouse can be found at 450 Golden Gate Avenue, San Francisco, California 94102.  Class member are NOT required to attend in order to obtain a settlement pay out.

All claim forms are due by February 14, 2013.  A class member can find the claim form at SmithSettlement.com.  The form can be printed and then mailed to: Smith Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 2748, Faribault, MN. 55021-9748.  Class members will be represented by Michael D. Donovan, Donald Driscoll, James C. Sturdevant and Jonathan A. Lang.  Please do not contact the court or the defendants about the case, all questions should be directed to the Settlement Administrator toll-free at 1-866-403-6561.  A class member may also submit the claim online.  Under the current settlement terms class members will only get one settlement payment no matter how many notices they received or payments they made during the time period.  It should be noted that American Corrective Counseling Services and National Corrective Group deny all actions of wrong doing in the lawsuit but have agreed to settlement terms.

www.SmithSettlement.com