What Is This Lawsuit About?

This lawsuit claims that Defendant violated Michigan’s Preservation of Personal Privacy Act, H.B. 5331, 84th Leg. Reg. Sess., P.A. No. 378 §§ 1-4, id. § 5, added by H.B. 4694, 85th Leg. Reg. Sess., P.A. No. 206, § 1 (Mich. 1989) (the “PPPA”), by disclosing information related to its customers’ magazine subscriptions to third parties between June 16, 2015 and July 30, 2016. The Defendant denies it violated any law. The Court has not determined who is right. Rather, the Parties have agreed to settle the lawsuit to avoid the uncertainties and expenses associated with ongoing litigation.

Who Is in the Settlement Class?

The Court decided that everyone who fits the following description is a member of the Settlement Class:

The 14,503 direct purchasers whose information was included on the lists obtained in discovery that were transmitted to third parties between June 16, 2015 and July 30, 2016, and thus that have standing, which are reflected on the Class List.

Excluded from the Settlement Class are (1) any Judge or Magistrate presiding over this Action and members of their families; (2) the Defendant, Defendant’s subsidiaries, parent companies, successors, predecessors, and any entity in which the Defendant or its parents have a controlling interest and their current or former officers, directors, agents, attorneys, and employees; (3) persons who properly execute and file a timely request for exclusion from the class; and (4) the legal representatives, successors or assigns of any such excluded persons.

What Does this Settlement Provide?

A Settlement Fund has been created totaling $9,500,000.00. Class Member payments, and the cost to administer the Settlement, the cost to inform people about the Settlement, attorneys’ fees (inclusive of litigation costs), and an award to the Class Representative will also come out of this fund. Additionally, KSE has agreed to refrain, in perpetuity, from disclosing to any third party the subscription information of any subscribers to any of its publications who reside in Michigan.