Being the class representative ("class rep") comes with the opportunity for an incentive award. Our last class rep received $15,000 in his pocket. This award is typically given to the person(s) who files the case first, so it is essential to immediately contact us when you receive a letter stating you were part of a data breach. Courts reward class reps for bringing class actions because they act as advocates for the members of the class who might not be familiar with legal procedures or lack the means to protect their violated rights. I often describe this role as someone who takes up the banner of justice, symbolized by the American flag.
The name of the robocall class action where we got the court to award $15,000 to our class rep is Sawyer v. Intermex Wire Transfer, LLC, Case No.: 1:19-cv-22212. Mr. Sawyer only received 2 unwanted calls. And he was required to do very little in the litigation, in fact, he did not need to answer written discovery, or have his deposition taken. He simply went to a telephonic mediation where he said, "good morning." After a few hours, the court reached and approved a settlement on behalf of the class, with the court commending both our legal team and our client. It's not always this easy, but it's what we push for aggressively each case.
In our Sawyer case, the class members received $500. They were sent postcards and, by checking a box, they could claim the $500. Mr. Sawyer, as part of the class, also received $500. This was a great result for our clients, especially since more people in the class only got one unwanted call.
Our last data breach class action all class member received up to $25,000 based upon what happened to them. Some class members had false information on their credit or some other suspicious activity so they received $25,0000, and some who didn't have those issues received a little less. This was a massive case and had seventeen (17) class reps. In this case, each class rep received $5,000, plus in all class actions, they received what all the members of the class receive, which in this case was $25,000.
In general class actions are what makes the bad guys not act bad. Class action lawsuits and all of the "putative" [Latin for potential] class members pose an expensive threat to Defendants because they all could bring separate cases since they were all similarly wronged. The best way to bring justice for all is to bring a class whenever possible.
The first firm to file in court holds the advantage of directing how a class action is handled, and no firm in the country pushes harder to get our class reps big awards and our class member large amounts of money and justice.
If you received a letter saying you're part of a data breach or have an idea that you may be a victim of some other system-wide practice violating your rights and/or privacy call or text Billy Howard directly at 813-774-1416.