Gaul et al. v. CheckPeople, LLC

United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois, Peoria Division
Case No. 21-cv-01313

Submit a Claim

Welcome to the Settlement Website for the
Gaul et al. v. CheckPeople, LLC Settlement

Settlement Update as of October 31, 2024: The Court has approved the Settlement, and the Settlement Administrator will send Settlement Payments on December 30, 2024. Class Members who selected a digital payment method (Venmo or Zelle) should receive their payment by January 2, 2025. Class Member who did not select a digital payment method will be sent a check in the mail via USPS.

IF YOU LIVE OR LIVED IN ILLINOIS AND SOMEONE SEARCHED YOUR NAME AND PURCHASED A REPORT ON CHECKPEOPLE.COM BETWEEN NOVEMBER 1, 2020 AND MARCH 31, 2023, YOU MAY BE ENTITLED TO A CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT PAYMENT AND INJUNCTIVE RELIEF.

  • A Settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit between individuals with an Illinois residential address and CheckPeople, LLC (“Defendant” or “CheckPeople”) about the alleged display of identifying information on CheckPeople.com. The lawsuit claims that Defendant violated an Illinois law called the Illinois Right of Publicity Act when it allegedly used individuals’ names, ages, current city and state of residence, former residence locations, lists of possible relatives, or other identifying information to advertise or promote the subscription service to its people search engine. The Court has not decided who is right or wrong.


  • The Injunction Settlement Class includes all Illinois residents in CheckPeople’s database between November 1, 2020 through June 20, 2024. As part of the Settlement, CheckPeople has agreed not to use Injunction Settlement Class Members’ names in connection with any offer to purchase a subscription on their website. Even if you did not receive this notice by email or U.S. Mail, you may still be an Injunction Settlement Class Member.


  • The Damages Settlement Subclass includes all Illinois residents (1) whose names were displayed on a search result page (2) where their profiles were clicked on by a user who subsequently purchased a CheckPeople subscription (3) between November 1, 2020 through March 31, 2023. If you received a notice of the Settlement by email or U.S. Mail, our records indicate that you may be a Damages Settlement Subclass Member and you may submit a claim form online or by mail to receive a payment. An explanation of the differences between the Damages Settlement Subclass and the Injunction Settlement Class is included in FAQ 5.


  • If the Court approves the Settlement, members of the Damages Settlement Subclass who submit a valid claim will receive an equal, or pro rata, share of either a $2,598,050 fund that Defendant agreed to create, after all notice and administration costs, incentive awards, and attorneys’ fees have been paid. Individual payments to Damages Settlement Subclass Members who submit a valid Claim Form are estimated to be $200 to $400, but the Settlement payments could be more or less depending on the number of valid claims submitted.


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

YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OPTIONS IN THIS SETTLEMENT

SUBMIT A CLAIM FORM

This is the only way to receive a payment. Only Damages Settlement Subclass Members can submit a claim form or receive a payment. You must submit a complete and valid claim form either online or by mail before September 10, 2024.

DO NOTHING

You will receive no payment under the Settlement and, if you are a Damages Settlement Subclass Member, give up your right to sue CheckPeople in a future lawsuit about the claims addressed in the Settlement.

EXCLUDE YOURSELF

If you don’t want to be a part of the Damages Settlement Subclass, you must submit a request to be excluded by September 10, 2024. You will receive no payment, but you will retain any rights you currently have to sue CheckPeople about the issues in this case. You may not exclude yourself from the Injunction Settlement Class.

OBJECT

Write to the Court explaining why you don’t like any part of the Settlement by September 10, 2024. Both Damages Settlement Subclass Members and Injunctive Class Members can submit objections.

ATTEND A HEARING

Ask to speak in Court about the fairness of the Settlement. Both Damages Settlement Subclass Members and Injunctive Class Members can attend the final approval hearing.


These rights and options—and the deadlines to exercise them—are explained in the Notice.

The Court in charge of this case must still decide whether to approve the Settlement. Payments will only be provided after any issues with the Settlement are resolved. Please be patient.

Upcoming Important Dates

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