1. What is the Notice and why should I read it?
2. What is a putative class action lawsuit?
3. What is this lawsuit about?
4. Who is included in the Damages Settlement Subclass?
5. What is the difference between the Injunction Settlement Class and the Damages Settlement Subclass?
6. What does the Settlement provide?
7. How do I get a payment?
8. When will I get my payment?
9. Do I have a lawyer in the case?
10. Should I get my own lawyer?
11. How will the lawyers be paid?
12. What happens if I do nothing at all?
13. What happens if I ask to be excluded?
14. How do I ask to be excluded?
15. If I don’t exclude myself, can I sue CheckPeople for the same thing later?
16. If I exclude myself, can I get anything from this Settlement?
17. How do I object to the Settlement?
18. What’s the difference between objecting and excluding myself from the Settlement?
19. When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the Settlement?
20. Do I have to come to the Final Approval Hearing?
21. May I speak at the Final Approval Hearing?
22. Where do I get more information?
The Court authorized Notice to let you know about a proposed Settlement with CheckPeople. You have legal rights and options that you may act on before the Court decides whether to approve the proposed Settlement. You may be eligible to receive a cash payment as part of the Settlement. The notice explains the lawsuit, the Settlement, and your legal rights.
Judge James E. Shadid of the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois is overseeing this class action. The case is called Gaul, et al. v. CheckPeople, LLC, No. 21-cv-0313 (C.D. Ill.). The people who filed the lawsuit, Sherry Gaul and Stephanie Lukis, are the Plaintiffs. The company they sued, CheckPeople, LLC, is the Defendant.
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A class action is a lawsuit in which an individual or individuals called the “Class Representatives” bring a single lawsuit on behalf of other people who have similar legal claims. All of these people together are a “Class” or “Class Members.” Once a Settlement Class is certified, a class action Settlement finally approved by the Court resolves the issues for all Settlement Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the Settlement Classes.
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CheckPeople runs a website that provides directory services, including various information about people. CheckPeople advertises paid subscriptions to access its database of information. The Illinois Right of Publicity Act, 765 ILCS 1075/1, et seq., prohibits using individuals’ names other identifying information to advertise, promote, or in connection with an offer for sale any of its products or services, without written consent. This lawsuit alleges that CheckPeople violated the Illinois Right of Publicity Act by allegedly displaying Illinois residents’ identifying information, including names, ages, current city and state of residence, former residence locations, lists of possible relatives on CheckPeople’s website in connection in response to a search to advertise the purchase of a subscription to CheckPeople’s services between November 1, 2020 and March 31, 2023. The Illinois Right of Publicity Act provides for $1,000 damages per violation. CheckPeople denies that it did anything wrong or violated any law.
More information about Plaintiffs’ complaint in the lawsuit and the Defendant’s defenses can be found in the “Important Documents” section of this website.
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You are a member of the Damages Settlement Subclass if you are or were an Illinois resident and (1) your name was displayed on a search result page (2) where your profile 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 via email or in the mail, our records indicate that you are a class member and are included in the Damages Settlement Subclass. You may call or email the Settlement Administrator at (844) 804-1608 or info@checkpeoplerightofpublicity.com to ask whether you are a member of the Damages Settlement Subclass.
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The Injunction Settlement Class includes Illinois residents in Defendant’s database from November 1, 2020 through June 20, 2024. The Damages Settlement Subclass is a subset of individuals listed in Defendant’s database: those individuals who were searched for on the database and for whom a report was purchased.
Individuals who are only members of the Injunction Settlement Class – those who were in Defendant’s database but were not searched for and did not have a report on them purchased – will receive Prospective Relief (described below in Question 6) and retain their rights to sue Defendant for damages claims, but they will not be eligible to receive a cash payment under the Settlement. Damages Settlement Subclass Members will be eligible to receive both Prospective Relief and a cash payment.
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Cash Payments. If you’re eligible, you can file a claim to receive a cash payment. 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. These will be a pro rata, or equal, share of either a $2,598,050 fund that CheckPeople agreed to create for the Damages Settlement Subclass, after the payment of Settlement expenses, attorneys’ fees, and any incentive awards for the Class Representatives approved by the Court.
Prospective Relief. Under the Settlement, CheckPeople has agreed not to display the identifying information of any Class Member whose location, according to CheckPeople’s database, remains in Illinois, on any page on its website that includes a subscription offer to CheckPeople’s products or services by the Settlement’s Effective Date, and to refrain from doing so for a period of three years thereafter.
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If you are a Damages Settlement Subclass Member and you want to get a payment, you must complete and submit a valid Claim Form by September 10, 2024. If you received an email notice, it contained a link to the online Claim Form. which is also available on here and can be filled out and submitted online. The online claim form lets you select to receive your payment by Venmo, Zelle, or check. A paper Claim Form with pre-paid postage was attached to the postcard notice you may have received in the mail. If you send in a paper Claim Form and it is approved, you will receive a check by mail. By participating in the settlement you will be bound by all orders and judgments of the Court.
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The hearing to consider the fairness of the Settlement is scheduled for October 31, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. If the Court approves the Settlement and there are no appeals, Class Members whose claims were approved by the Settlement will be issued a check or electronic payment (as chosen by the Class Member) within 28 days after the Settlement Effective Date. Please be patient. Uncashed checks and electronic payments that are unable to be completed will expire and become void 180 days after they are issued and will revert to the Settlement Fund to be distributed pro rata to claiming Damages Settlement Subclass Members or in a manner as otherwise directed by the Court upon application made by Class Counsel.
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Yes, the Court has appointed J. Eli Wade-Scott and Michael J. Ovca of Edelson PC and Philip L. Fraietta of Bursor & Fisher, P.A. as the attorneys to represent you and other Class Members. These attorneys are called “Class Counsel.” In addition, the Court appointed Plaintiffs Sherry Gaul and Stephinie Lukis to serve as Class Representatives. They are Class Members like you. Class Counsel can be reached by calling (312) 589-6370.
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You don’t need to hire your own lawyer because Class Counsel is working on your behalf. You may hire your own lawyer, but if you do so, you will have to pay that lawyer.
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Class Counsel will ask the Court for attorneys’ fees and expenses of up to 35% of the Settlement Fund, and will also request incentive awards of $1,000 for each of the two Class Representatives from the Settlement Fund. If the Settlement is finally approved, the Court will determine the proper amount of any attorneys’ fees and expenses to award Class Counsel and the proper amount of any awards to the Class Representatives. The Court may award less than the amounts requested.
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If you are a Damages Settlement Subclass Member and you do nothing, you will receive no money from the Settlement Fund, but you will still be bound by all orders and judgments of the Court. Unless you are a Damages Settlement Subclass Member and exclude yourself from the Settlement, you will not be able to file or continue a lawsuit against CheckPeople or the other Released Parties regarding any of the Released Claims. Submitting a valid and timely Claim Form is the only way to receive a payment from this Settlement.
To submit a Claim Form, or for information on how to request exclusion from the Damages Settlement Subclass or file an objection, please review the these Frequently Asked Questions. You may also call (844) 804-1608 for more information about the Settlement.
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You may exclude yourself from the Settlement if you a member of the Damages Settlement Subclass. If you do so, you will not receive any cash payment, but you will not release any claims you may have against the Released Parties (as that term is defined in the Settlement Agreement) and are free to pursue whatever legal rights you may have by pursuing your own lawsuit against the Released Parties at your own risk and expense.
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You can mail or email a request stating that you want to be excluded from the Settlement. Your request must: (a) be in writing; (b) identify the case name Gaul, et al. v. CheckPeople, LLC, No. 21-cv-01313 (C.D. Ill.); (c) state the full name and current address of the person seeking exclusion; (d) be signed by the person(s) seeking exclusion; and (e) be postmarked or received by the Settlement Administrator on or before September 10, 2024. Each request for exclusion must also contain a statement to the effect that “I hereby request to be excluded from the proposed Damages Settlement Subclass in Gaul, et al. v. CheckPeople, LLC, No. 21-cv-01313 (C.D. Ill.).” You must mail or email your exclusion request no later than September 10, 2024 to:
Gaul, et al. v. CheckPeople, LLC
c/o Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 25226
Santa Ana, CA 92799
-or-
info@checkpeoplerightofpublicity.com
You can’t exclude yourself over the phone. No person may request to be excluded from the Damages Settlement Subclass through “mass” or “class” opt-outs. This means that each individual who seeks to exclude themselves must send an individual, separate request to the Settlement Administrator that complies with each of the requirements listed above.
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No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up any right to sue CheckPeople and any other Released Party for the claims being resolved by this Settlement.
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No. If you exclude yourself, you will not receive a payment.
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If you do not exclude yourself from the Damages Settlement Subclass, you can object to the Settlement if you don’t like any part of it. Injunction Settlement Class Members may also object. To object, you must file a letter or brief with the court stating that you object to the Settlement in Gaul v. CheckPeople, LLC, No. 21-cv-01313 (C.D. Ill.) no later than September 10, 2024. Your objection must be e-filed or delivered to the court at the following address:
Clerk of the United States District Court for the Central District of Illinois
United States Courthouse
100 N.E. Monroe Street
Peoria, Illinois 61602
Filing instructions for pro se litigants can be found here.
The objection must be in writing, personally signed by the objector, and must include: (a) the person’s full name and current address, (b) a statement that he or she believes himself or herself to be a member of the Injunction Settlement Class and/or Damages Settlement Subclass, (c) whether the objection applies only to the objector, to a specific subset of the Injunction Settlement Class and/or Damages Settlement Subclass, or to the entire Injunction Settlement Class and/or Damages Settlement Subclass, (d) the specific grounds for the objection, (e) all documents or writings that the person desires the Court to consider, (f) the name and contact information of any and all attorneys representing, advising, or in any way assisting the objector in connection with the preparation or submission of the objection or who may profit from the pursuit of the objection, and (g) a statement indicating whether the objector intends to appear at the Final Approval Hearing (either personally or through counsel, who must file an appearance or seek pro hac vice admission). All written objections must be filed with the Court and postmarked, emailed, or delivered to Class Counsel and Defendant’s Counsel no later than September 10, 2024.
If you hire an attorney in connection with making an objection, that attorney must file an appearance with the Court or seek pro hac vice admission to practice before the Court, and electronically file the objection by the objection deadline of September 10, 2024. If you do hire your own attorney, you will be solely responsible for payment of any fees and expenses the attorney incurs on your behalf. If you exclude yourself from the Settlement, you cannot file an objection.
In addition to filing your objection with the Court, you must send via mail, email, or delivery service, by no later than September 10, 2024, copies of your objection and any supporting documents to both Class Counsel and Defendant’s lawyers at the addresses listed below:
Class Counsel | Defendant’s Counsel |
Eli Wade-Scott | Stephen J. Rosenfeld |
Class Counsel will file with the Court and post on this settlement website its request for attorneys’ fees and incentive awards on August 23, 2024.
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Objecting simply means telling the Court that you don’t like something about the Settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Damages Settlement Subclass. Excluding yourself from the Damages Settlement Subclass is telling the Court that you don’t want to be a Damages Settlement Subclass Member. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object because the case no longer affects you.
Injunctive Settlement Class Members can object to the Settlement, but they cannot exclude themselves. This is because Injunctive Settlement Class Members are only getting prospective relief, see FAQ 5, are not eligible to receive a settlement payment, and are not giving up their right to sue CheckPeople for the claims that this lawsuit is resolving.
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The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing on October 31, 2024 at 11:00 a.m. before the Honorable James E. Shadid at the United States Courthouse, 100 N.E. Monroe Street, Peoria, Illinois 61602 or via remote means as instructed by the Court. The purpose of the hearing is for the Court to determine whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, adequate, and in the best interests of the Settlement Classes. At the hearing, the Court will hear any objections and arguments concerning the fairness of the proposed Settlement, including those related to the amount requested by Class Counsel for attorneys’ fees and expenses and the incentive awards to the Class Representatives.
Note: The date and time of the Final Approval Hearing are subject to change by Court Order. Any changes will be posted on this website.
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No. Class Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. You are welcome to come at your own expense. If you send an objection, you don’t have to come to Court to talk about it. As long as your written objection was filed or mailed on time and meets the other criteria required and described in the Settlement, the Court will consider it. You may also pay a lawyer to attend, but you don’t have to.
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Yes. If you do not exclude yourself, you may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing concerning any part of the proposed Settlement. If you filed an objection (see Question 16 above) and intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing, you must state your intention to do so in your objection.
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The Notice summarizes the proposed Settlement. More details, including the Settlement Agreement and other documents are available in the Important Documents section of this website or at the Clerk’s Office in the United States Courthouse, 100 N.E. Monroe Street, Peoria, Illinois 61602, between 8:30 a.m. and 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Court holidays. You can also contact Class Counsel at (312) 589-6370 with any questions.
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