IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR ... - Cleveland.com

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s/ Anthony J. Lazzaro ANTHONY J. LAZZARO (0077962) anthony@lazzarolawfirm.com THE LAZZARO LAW FIRM, LLC 920 Rockefeller Building 614 W. Superior Avenue Cleveland, OH 44113 (216) 696-5000 [Telephone] (216) 696-7005 [Facsimile] Attorneys for Named Plaintiffs 8 /s/ Vilia B. Hayes VILIA B. HAYES (New York Registration No. 1721976) hayes@hugheshubbard.com HUGHES HUBBARD & REED LLP One Battery Park Plaza New York, NY 10004-1482 (212) 837-6000 [Telephone] (212) 422-4726 [Facsimile] Attorneys for Defendants /s/ Maynard A. Buck MAYNARD A. BUCK (0022423) PATRICK O. PETERS (0079539) BENESCH, FRIEDLANDER, COPLAN & ARONOFF LLP 200 Public Square, Suite 2300 Cleveland, Ohio 44114-2378 Telephone: (216) 363-4500 Facsimile: (216) 363-4588 E-mail: mbuck@beneschlaw.com ppeters@beneschlaw.com Attorneys for Defendants Dirk Kettlewell, Dawn Callahan-Kettlewell, Dale Fuller, Mark Race and John Bulgarella Dated: March 29, 2010 Dated: March 29, 2010
NOTICE OF SETTLEMENT OF INKSTOP LAWSUITS (with attached form to obtain a settlement payment) TO: All salaried and hourly employees of InkStop, Inc. who were not paid for work performed after September 13, 2009 (“the Non-Payment Group”); and all salaried Store Managers of InkStop, Inc. after January 7, 2008 (“the Store Manager Group”). FROM: Judge Oliver, United States District Court for the Northern District of Ohio. This Notice informs you of the settlement of wage-and-hour lawsuits by InkStop employees and provides you with a Settlement Form which you must sign and return to receive your settlement payment. 1. INTRODUCTION AND SUMMARY The Settlement announced by this Notice makes substantial Settlement Payments available to all eligible employees of InkStop in the two groups defined above (the Non-Payment Group and the Store Manager Group). The Settlement is supported by Melanie Warren and Carol Laskoski, who serve as Representative Plaintiffs in the two federal lawsuits against Executive Officers and Directors of InkStop, and was negotiated by Plaintiffs’ Counsel who represent Warren, Laskoski, and 237 other InkStop employees in those cases. TO RECEIVE A SETTLEMENT PAYMENT, YOU MUST RETURN THE ATTACHED FORM 2. THE INKSTOP LAWSUITS On October 2, 2009, InkStop, Inc. went out of business, leaving employees unpaid for work performed after September 13, 2009. On October 4, 2009, a lawsuit seeking payment for unpaid work was filed against InkStop and two of its Executive Officers. The lawsuit was filed by Representative Plaintiffs Melanie Warren, who had worked for InkStop as a Store Manager, and Carol Laskoski, who had worked as an Assistant Store Lead. On November 5, 2009, InkStop, Inc. filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy petition. On November 13, 2009, InkStop was dropped as a defendant in the first lawsuit, and a second lawsuit was filed against other Executive Officers and Directors. The InkStop Lawsuits assert claims under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act and various state laws. For the Non-Payment Group defined above, the Lawsuits seek wages for both hourly and salaried employees for the unpaid work performed after September 13, 2009. For the Store Manager Group, the Lawsuits allege that salaried employees who worked as Store Managers after January 7, 2008 were improperly classified as “exempt” from overtime compensation are owed unpaid overtime compensation. 3. THE SETTLEMENT The Settlement was reached between the Representative Plaintiffs and all the former members of InkStop’s Board of Directors, and has been approved by the U.S. District Court as fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Settlement is binding on the Representative Plaintiffs and the 237 former employees who previously opted into the lawsuits by submitting consent forms. In addition, the Settlement will include all other eligible employees who choose to participate by signing the attached form. The terms of the Settlement are summarized below. A. Settlement Payments to InkStop Employees and Released Claims The Total Settlement Amount is $660,000. That amount, after deductions approved by the Court, will be divided into Individual Payments to eligible employees as follows. Ninety percent (90%) will be allocated to employees in the Non-Payment Group, who are eligible for Individual Payments proportionate to their Exhibit 6
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MELANIE WARREN and CAROL LASKOSKI,
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MICHAEL SHAUGHNESSY (“Directors
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C. The term “Other Eligible Settl
Page 7 and 8: Participants who returned signed Co
Page 9 and 10: fees to Plaintiffs’ Counsel in an
Page 11 and 12: (2) Sixty days after the date of th
Page 13 and 14: (c) Participants who fall within bo
Page 15 and 16: similarly situated employees exists
Page 17 and 18: 12. Governing Law. This Agreement i
Page 23 and 24: LIST OF EXISTING OPT-IN PLAINTIFFS
Page 25 and 26: LIST OF EXISTING OPT-IN PLAINTIFFS
Page 27 and 28: LIST OF OTHER ELIGIBLE SETTLEMENT P
Page 35 and 36: LIST OF INKSTOP STORE MANAGERS NUMB
Page 41 and 42: SCHEDULE OF INDIVIDUAL PAYMENTS (Af
Page 51 and 52: IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
Page 53 and 54: 3. The Named Plaintiffs in the Laws
Page 55 and 56: amount $166.72. Participants who fa
Page 57: 16. The Court approves the payment
Page 61 and 62: CONSENT TO OPT INTO LAWSUIT, RELEAS
Page 63 and 64: 1. The Court previously granted the
Page 65 and 66: jbristol@crklaw.com THOMAS A. DOWNI
Page 67 and 68: 1. The Court previously granted the
Page 69: tdownie@crklaw.com COHEN ROSENTHAL
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