Overview Of The Proposed Settlement
Nicholls v. EMC Mortgage Corporation
United States District Court For The District Of Massachusetts, Eastern Division
You May be Entitled to Receive Compensation Under this Class Action Settlement.
A settlement (the "Settlement") has been reached in a class action lawsuit entitled Robert L. Nicholls and Gwendolyn A. Hogan-Nicholls v. EMC Mortgage Corp., Case No. 11-cv-12303-PBS (D. Mass.), involving claims that EMC Mortgage LLC, formerly known as EMC Mortgage Corporation ("EMC"), violated Mass. Gen. Law Ann. ch. 183 § 59 ("Section 59") by assessing late fees on payments that plaintiffs’ allege would have been timely and sufficient but for EMC's practice of applying payments received to the oldest outstanding installment due.
An example of the alleged conduct, based on plaintiffs' interpretation of Section 59, is as follows: If a borrower failed to make a payment in January and had a late fee assessed, and the borrower subsequently made one full payment, EMC would credit the payment for January and assess a second late fee for non-payment of the February bill.
EMC denies Plaintiffs' allegations and interpretation of Section 59, and denies any liability or wrongdoing, and the Court has not decided whether EMC did anything wrong. The Court has, however, preliminarily approved the settlement which affects your legal rights and you have a choice to make now.
The Settlement will provide for a fund of $570,000 to pay for a portion of the late fees that were assessed and paid, plus attorneys' fees and disbursements to be approved by the Court, an enhancement payment to the Class Representatives and the costs of administrating the Settlement.
Your legal rights are affected whether you act or do not act. Please read the Notice carefully.
YOUR RIGHTS AND CHOICES:
| YOU MAY: | DUE DATE: | |
| DO NOTHING | If you do nothing and you receive an award, you will be giving up rights you may have to separately sue the "Released Parties" (as defined by paragraph 1.38 the Settlement) for legal claims released by the Settlement. | N/A |
| OBJECT | Write to the Court about why you do not like the Settlement. | February 16, 2014 |
| EXCLUDE YOURSELF | Ask to be excluded from the Settlement. This is the only option that allows you to be part of any other lawsuit against the Released Parties for legal claims released by this Settlement. | February 16, 2014 |
| APPEAR IN THE LAWSUIT OR GO TO A HEARING | Participate in the lawsuit on your own or through your own lawyer. You can also ask to speak in Court about the proposed Settlement. | March 5, 2014 |
These rights and choices – and the deadlines to exercise them – are further explained in the Notice.
