Path: utzoo!attcan!uunet!lll-winken!ames!netsys!vector!telecom-gateway From: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu (TELECOM Moderator) Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom Subject: (none) Message-ID: Date: 29 Mar 89 06:34:41 GMT Sender: news@vector.UUCP Lines: 161 Approved: telecom-request@vector.uucp X-Submissions-To: telecom@eecs.nwu.edu X-Administrivia-To: telecom-request@vector.uucp X-TELECOM-Digest: volume 9, issue 114, message 1 of 3 NOTICE OF CLASS ACTION AND PROPOSED SETTLEMENT TO CERTAIN CURRENT AND FORMER CUSTOMERS OF UNITED STATES TRANSMISSION SYSTEMS, INC. (NOW KNOWN AS ITT COMMUNICATIONS SERVICES, INC.) By order of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, PLEASE TAKE NOTICE THAT: A class action lawsuit has been filed on behalf of certain former and current customers against United States Transmission Systems, Inc., now known as ITT Communications Services, Inc., hereinafter referred to as 'USTS'. The Court has preliminarily approved a settlement of this lawsuit. YOU ARE URGED TO READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY BECAUSE IT AFFECTS YOUR RIGHTS AND WILL BE BINDING ON YOU IN THE FUTURE. I. NOTICE OF A PENDING CLASS ACTION A. Description of the Lawsuit Plaintiffs have sued USTS, alleging that USTS charged customers for certain unanswered phone calls, holding time, busy signals, and central office recorded messages, hereinafter referred to as 'unanswered calls', without adequately disclosing such charges to their customers or the public. Plaintiffs seek to present their own claims for charges for unanswered calls, as well as the claims of other current and former USTS customers for similar charges. USTS denies the violations alleged by plaintiffs, and contends that at all times, USTS has charged its subscribers fairly and properly and has disclosed fully and fairly the basis for its long distance charges. USTS has agreed to settle plaintiff's suit solely to avoid the expense, inconvenience and disruption of further litigation. This notice is not an expression of any opinion by the Court of the merits of this litigation or of the Settlement Agreement. The Complaint, the Settlement Agreement and other pleadings in this case may be inspected during normal business hours at the office of the Clerk of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, 231 West Lafayette Boulevard, Detroit, MI 48226. B. The Settlement Class Plaintiffs and USTS have entered into a Settlement Agreement, which has been preliminarily approved by the Court. Under the terms of the Settlement Agreement, the parties have agreed, for purposes of settlement only, that this suit has been brought on behalf of the following class of persons similarly situated to Plaintiffs, hereinafter known as 'the Class': All persons and entities that subscribed to and utilitzed the long distance telephone service of USTS or its predecessor ITT Corporate Communication Services, Inc., referred to collectively hereinafter as 'USTS', at any time during the period January 1, 1979 through December 31, 1985. C. How to Remain a Class Member If you were a subscriber to and utilized USTS' long distance service at any time during this period, you are a member of the Class. You need do nothing to remain a member of the Class and participate in the benefits this settlement will provide. If you remain in the Class, you will be bound by the results of the settlement and/or the lawsuit. D. How to Exclude Yourself From the Class You are not required to be a member of the Class. Should you decide that you do not want to me a member of the Class, you must send an Exclusion Notice that states your name, your current address, and your desire to be excluded from the Class to the Clerk of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan at the address given at the end of this Notice, postmarked no later than April 20, 1989. If you choose to be excluded from the Class, you may not participate in the settlement. You will not, however, be bound by any judgment dismissing this action and you will be free to pursue on your own behalf any legal rights you may have. II. TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT The Settlement Agreeent requires USTS to provide to Class members up to 750,000 minutes of long distance telephone credits having a maximum value, at 30 cents per minute, of $225,000, hereinafter known as the "Settlement Credits", and cash refunds up to a maximum of $50,000. These benefits are available to Class membes who file a proof of claim in a timely manner as described in Section III below. Class members may choose one benefit from the following options: A. A *standardized credit* toward USTS long distance telephone service of $1.50 for each year from 1979 through 1985 in which the Class member (i) was a USTS customer, and (ii) claims that s/he was charged by USTS for unanswered calls; or B. A *standardized cash refund* of 90 cents for each year from 1979 through 1985 in which the Class member was (i) was a USTS customer and (ii) claims that s/he was charged by USTS for unanswered calls; or, C. An *itemized credit* toward USTS long distance service of 30 cents for each minute of unanswered calls for which the Class member was charged during the Class period (January 1, 1979 through December 31, 1985) and for which the Class member has not been previously reimbursed or credited; or, D. An *itemized cash refund* of 30 cents for each minute of unanswered calls for which the Class member charged during the Class period (January 1, 1979 through December 31, 1985) and for which the Class member has not been previously reimbursed or credited. To obtain an *itemized* credit or cash refund, the Class member must itemize and attest to each unanswered call for for which a refund or credit is claimed. If the total credits claimed by Class members exceed 750,000 credit minutes, each Class member claiming Settlement Credits will receive his/her/its pro rata share of the total Settlement Credits available. Class members need not be current USTS customers to claim the standardized and itemized credits. USTS will automatically open an account for any Class member who requests credits and executes an authorization to open such an account. If a Class member incurs a local telephone company service charge in connection with the opening of a USTS account, USTS will issue a credit to the Class member's account for the full amount of such service charge upon receipt of the local telephone company's bill for the service charge. USTS is not responsible for any other service charge that a local telephone company may impose for ordering, using or terminating USTS service. The Settlement Agreement requires USTS to pay the costs of giving this Notice (up to a maximum of $120,000) and of administering the settlement described above. The Settlement Agreement further provides that upon final approval of the settlement, the Court will enter a judgment dismissing with prejudice all claims of plaintiffs and members of the Class that have been or might have been asserted in this action and that relate to USTS' billing practices and disclosure practices for unanswered calls. Counsel for the Class have investigated the facts and circumstances regarding the claims against USTS and their defenses. In view of those circumstances, counsel for the Class have concluded that this Settlement Agreement is fair and reasonable, and in the best interests of the Class. III. HOW TO FILE A CLAIM To receive Settlement Credits or a Cash Refund, you must first obtain a Proof of Claim Notice; then provide all the information requested and return it to the Clerk of the Court postmarked no later than June 30, 1989. To obtain claim forms: To file completed claim form: USTS Class Action Claim Administrator Clerk of the United States Court ITT Communication Services, Inc. ATTN: USTS Settlement 100 Plaza Drive 231 W. Lafayette Blvd. Room 740 Secaucus, NJ 07096 Detroit, MI 48226 If you have any further questions about this Notice, or the filing of Proof of Claim, *write* to the USTS Action Claim Administrator at the above address. If you have any questions about this lawsuit or your participation therein as a member of the Class, *write* to lead counsel for plaintiffs -- Sachnoff Weaver & Rubenstein, Ltd. ATTN: USTS Settlement 30 South Wacker Drive, Suite 2900 Chicago, IL 60606 Always consult your own attorney for legal advice and questions which concern you about your rights in any class action matter. DO NOT telephone the Court. DO NOT telephone the attornies for plaintiff. DO NOT telephone the Claims Administrator; any office of USTS or any of its employees. DO NOT telephone any Telephone Company asking for information on this matter. Only *written correspondence filed in a timely manner will be considered by the Court.*