NOTICE OF CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT REGARDING IMPROPER FILING FEES IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS

Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois

The Court authorized this notice. This is not a solicitation from a lawyer.

IF YOU PAID A FILING FEE BETWEEN JULY 25, 2009 THROUGH FEBRUARY 21, 2017 IN THE CIRCUIT COURT OF COOK COUNTY, ILLINOIS TO FILE A MOTION OR PETITION TO RECONSIDER, VACATE, OR MODIFY AN INTERLOCUTORY JUDGMENT OR ORDER OF COURT, THIS NOTICE CONTAINS IMPORTANT INFORMATION THAT PERTAINS TO YOU. PLEASE READ IT CAREFULLY.  YOU MAY GET A PAYMENT FROM A CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT. 

• Defendants Dorothy Brown, as Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois and Cook County, Illinois (“Defendants”) have agreed to pay the amount of $5,218,155 into a Settlement Fund from which Settlement Class Members who submit valid Claim Forms will be paid after subtracting reimbursement of Class Counsel’s Litigation Costs as awarded by the Court, Service Awards of up to $10,000 to each of the Named Plaintiffs as awarded by the Court, attorneys’ fees as awarded by the Court to Class Counsel in an amount up to $1,594,385 from the Settlement Fund, as set forth in the Settlement Agreement, up to $625,000 for attorneys’ fees and costs to the plaintiff’s counsel in the related Gassman Action, as awarded by the Court, and Notice Costs and Administration Costs of the Settlement Administrator. Defendants have agreed to pay the amount of $5,218,155 into a Settlement Fund to settle all claims alleged against them in the following class action lawsuits: Midwest Medical Records Association, Inc. v. Dorothy Brown, et al., Case No. 15 CH 16986; RenX Group, LLC v. Dorothy Brown, et al., Case No. 15 CH 18832; Tomica Premovic v. Dorothy Brown, et al., Case No. 16 CH 193; and Clark v. Dorothy Brown, et al., Case No. 17 CH 12573, which were each filed in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois (the “Actions”).  The proposed settlement (“the Settlement”) is a compromise of all claims by Plaintiffs in the Actions including claims for unjust enrichment and violation of an Illinois statute regarding court filing fees. The Settlement will resolve all claims regarding Defendants’ charging of filing fees from July 25, 2009 to February 21, 2017 for motions or petitions to reconsider, vacate, or modify interlocutory judgments or orders of court, including any allegations contained in any of the Complaints in the Actions and/or any facts or circumstances that could have been alleged. 

•  A putative class action was also filed against Defendants in Gassman v. Dorothy Brown, et al., Case No. 14 CH 12269 (“Gassman Action”). The Gassman Action raises the same legal issues raised in the four class action lawsuits giving rise to this Settlement. To settle the Gassman Action in conjunction with this Settlement, pursuant to a separate settlement (“Gassman Settlement”), Defendants are paying the plaintiff’s counsel in the Gassman Action (“Gassman counsel”) their attorneys’ fees and costs up to the amount of $625,000, as awarded by the Court, out of the Settlement Fund in this Settlement.

• Settlement Class Members are those individuals and entities who paid a fee for the filing of a motion or petition to reconsider, vacate, or modify an interlocutory judgment or order of court in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois from July 25, 2009 to February 21, 2017 (the “Class Period”).

• The Settlement avoids the costs and risks from continuing the Actions, pays money to the individuals and entities who are part of the Settlement Class, and releases Defendants from further liability as to them.

• Your legal rights are affected whether you act or don’t act.  Please read this notice carefully.

• Your rights and options – and the procedures and your deadlines to exercise them – are explained in more detail below.  Please note, however, that this Notice is only a summary of the proposed Settlement.  For the complete terms and conditions of the proposed Settlement, you should read the document called the Settlement Agreement, which was filed with the Court and is available from the Settlement Webpage www.CookCountyCourtFeeSettlement.com.

The Court in charge of this case still must decide whether to approve the proposed Settlement. Payments will not be made until the Court approves the Settlement and any appeals are resolved. Please be patient.

Your Legal Rights and Options with this Settlement:
Receive your share of the settlement	If you are a member of the Settlement Class, then you are eligible for a payment.  You must submit a Claim Form as described in Question 10 in the Notice. Claim Forms must be submitted online or postmarked by the deadline of January 30, 2021
Exclude Yourself	You have the option to exclude yourself, or “Opt-Out” of this Settlement by following the directions in Question 14 in the Notice.  If you do so, you will get no payment. This is the only option that allows you to be part of any other lawsuit against Defendants based on the allegations made in this case.  The deadline for excluding yourself from the Settlement is January 15, 2021.
Object	Write to the Court about why you don’t like the Settlement by following the directions in Question 19 in the Notice.  The deadline for submitting a written objection to the Settlement is January 15, 2021.
Do Nothing	If you do nothing, you will get no payment and be bound by the Final Approval Order approving the Settlement.
Go to the Final Approval Hearing	You are not required to attend or speak at the Final Approval Hearing.  If you submit a timely and valid written objection to the Settlement, the Court will consider your objection without any further action on your part.  But, if you wish, you may request permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing by following the directions in Question 23 in the Notice.  The Final Approval Hearing occurred on March 8, 2021, and the Court approved the Settlement.