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Don Earl
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« Reply #60 on: June 06, 2008, 06:03:15 PM » |
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Menu Foods had annual revenue of over $300 million a year. The mix of product was roughly half "cuts and gravy". Crunching the numbers, the wholesale price of the recalled food for 4 months was $50 million. Retail mark up typically runs around 250% of wholesale, so the retail price to consumers on the recalled food would have been in the neighborhood of $125 million - that's just for Menu Foods, and doesn't count Iams, etc..
The $24 million settlement is less than 20% of what Menu Foods alone would have to pay JUST TO REFUND CUSTOMERS THE PRICE THEY PAID FOR THE POISONED FOOD!
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lesliek
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« Reply #61 on: June 06, 2008, 08:32:46 PM » |
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That fact just makes me want to throw up ! So if we had all returned their[IMHO]poison for a refund , it would have hit them in the wallet harder ?
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"the world's most inept extortionist"
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karvskitties
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« Reply #62 on: June 06, 2008, 10:56:31 PM » |
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That fact just makes me want to throw up ! So if we had all returned their[IMHO]poison for a refund , it would have hit them in the wallet harder ?
Everyone is correct on this thread. $24 million is beyond belif, ridiculous, not even worth the time the courts took on this (I bet they spent more on corporate lawyers, hiding evidence, advertising to rebuild public confidence, etc). Who the h**l are the lawyers that agreed to this in the first place?  They all advertised to GET ON THE BANDWAGON (I remember) - just for a piece of $8 million???Everyone involved should object. If your lawyer won't cooperate - see what your state has in line for Class Actions and representation (or the state sued in - Don?). I had no place in the suit against Menu (I was lucky). But this whole thing smells so rotten of corruption - I personally wouldn't touch it with a ten foot rod. |
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Karen V
Proud Mom of 3 Kitties (and many, many more over the Rainbow).
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Don Earl
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« Reply #63 on: June 06, 2008, 11:43:11 PM » |
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That fact just makes me want to throw up ! So if we had all returned their[IMHO]poison for a refund , it would have hit them in the wallet harder ?
Obviously, the food that was consumed couldn't be returned, but, yeah, that's about the size of it. The legal term is "unjust enrichment". All of the food, as far as I know, carries some form of guarantee, which would be your standard basis for a breach of warranty claim. Before any other damages were discussed, refunding the purchase price of all recalled food sold would have been the first slam dunk claim out of the gate on this thing. That alone had to have been in the hundreds of millions of dollars before any other damages are taken into consideration. RE: "see what your state has in line for Class Actions and representation (or the state sued in - Don?)." That's one I'm still not sure about. I've spent some time looking at the US Code, and my impression is the Federal Courts have original jurisdiction on something this size. Since those have all been consolidated, I don't think you can start over with a new class action on the same thing. I'm not sure if the same is true of a new single state class action, but I suspect it probably is. I'm fairly sure individual plaintiffs within a state could join together to file a suit, but I think there may be limits on how many and how much before it's considered a class action. That's one I think an attorney would have to be consulted on to find out how the law is applied to that kind of situation. |
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karvskitties
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« Reply #64 on: June 06, 2008, 11:59:45 PM » |
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I was speaking more to objections themselves, and complaints you can make about the attornies if they don't cooperate. Not necessarily starting another suit, but to deal with the outrageousness of this one. For obvious reasons, I myself had not alligned with an attorney in this suit.
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Karen V
Proud Mom of 3 Kitties (and many, many more over the Rainbow).
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JJ
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« Reply #65 on: June 07, 2008, 11:49:59 PM » |
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Were not pets valued in ones family before the lawsuits due to the recalled food doing what it did? Seems kinda odd that one would state this to be the case when so many of us have valued pets for over 30 years - not just since the pet food companies were called on the carpet for what was allowed to happen.
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'Life isn't about how to survive the storm,
But how to dance in the rain.'
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3catkidneyfailure
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« Reply #66 on: June 17, 2008, 07:59:52 AM » |
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http://www.sunherald.com:80/prnewswire/story/629065.htmlIf You Purchased or Your Pet(s) Consumed Recalled Pet Food, You May Be Eligible To Participate in a Class Action Settlement
WHAT ARE YOUR OPTIONS?
If you wish to remain a member of the Settlement Class, you do not have to do anything. But, to obtain any settlement benefits you must file a claim. If the Court approves the Proposed Settlement, you will be bound by all the Court's orders, the release and other provisions of the Settlement Agreement. This means you will give up any legal rights you may have against defendants and other released entities and individuals covered by the Settlement, regardless of whether you file a claim.
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3catkidneyfailure
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« Reply #67 on: June 18, 2008, 12:48:18 PM » |
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http://www.petfoodsettlement.com/documents/notices/notice.pdfon Page 2 or settlement notice: SUMMARY OF CLASS MEMBERS’ RIGHTS AND OPTIONS UNDER THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT SUBMIT A CLAIM BY November 24, 2008. EXCLUDE YOURSELF BY August 15, 2008. COMMENT ON THE PROPOSED SETTLEMENT GO TO A HEARING DO NOTHING http://amlawdaily.typepad.com/amlawdaily/2008/06/the-am-law-li-6.html... And while we're on the subject of fees for class action plaintiffs lawyers, let's look at the $6 million in fees and reimbursements that the lawyers in the tainted pet food settlement told potential class members they will seek. (Their notice to class members said they'd ask for "no more than $6 million," which usually means no less, either.)
For a big-time mass tort, $6 million doesn't sound like much, but it's actually a full 25 percent of the total $24 million in the settlement fund, a bigger slice of the pie than the 10 or 15 percent that class actions lawyers typically take (though less, of course, than the standard 33-to-40 percent contingency fee). ...
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Carol
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« Reply #68 on: June 19, 2008, 12:16:50 PM » |
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Well, I got my two claim forms in the mail today and upon reading it I was surprised to read that the defendants admit to no wrongdoing......so ..if they did nothing wrong....how did my and your cats and dogs get so sick or die from MARF???  you can read it on line too-- on page 3 under 2. What Are The Lawsuits About? http://www.petfoodsettlement.com/documents/notices/notice.pdf |
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“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” — Margaret Mead
United we stand Divided we fall....
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PFR07PS
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« Reply #69 on: June 19, 2008, 12:45:52 PM » |
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Accepting responsibility will never happen in the pet food industry.
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Don Earl
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« Reply #70 on: June 19, 2008, 03:02:14 PM » |
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25% to US attorneys, 6% to Canadian attorneys, plus expenses. The amazing part is evidently the 24 mil, less 31%, less expenses, is intended to cover all Canadian claims as well!
And what kind of rinky dink nonsense is it that the choice to opt out has to be made by August 15, but final approval by the court won't take place until October! That's totally insane! Not to mention the part about a blanket hold harmless clause regardless of whether or not one has received compensation.
Also, consider this; Menu Foods, according to PACER, is a named party in close to 500 actions the last time I looked. How exactly are the attorney fees split up? If something like $8 million is being split 500 ways, that would come to $16,000 per law firm. That hardly makes sense.
The only explanation I can think of that does make sense is the plaintiffs attorneys worked out the deal on coke and cognac, with liberal deposits to their off shore accounts.
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kittylyda
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« Reply #71 on: June 19, 2008, 03:11:27 PM » |
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I got my claim forms in the mail today. On top of everything else, what really bugs me is the fact that I already filled out forms, sent receipts, vet bills etc..to Crawford and Co when they were handling it for Menufoods. Now I have to do it all over again. Luckily I kept copies of everything, but I still have to fill out the new forms (one for EACH CAT) and copy everything one more time. There is nothing I like more than doing the same work TWICE. Is it not enough that my cats were poisoned and I already went through this? Everyone will have to please excuse me, this kind of thing puts me in a foul mood. |
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karvskitties
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« Reply #72 on: June 19, 2008, 10:40:52 PM » |
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I got my claim forms in the mail today. On top of everything else, what really bugs me is the fact that I already filled out forms, sent receipts, vet bills etc..to Crawford and Co when they were handling it for Menufoods. Now I have to do it all over again. Luckily I kept copies of everything, but I still have to fill out the new forms (one for EACH CAT) and copy everything one more time. There is nothing I like more than doing the same work TWICE. Is it not enough that my cats were poisoned and I already went through this? Everyone will have to please excuse me, this kind of thing puts me in a foul mood. Foul moods allowed, we are only human here (with furkids in the family). |
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Karen V
Proud Mom of 3 Kitties (and many, many more over the Rainbow).
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3catkidneyfailure
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« Reply #73 on: June 20, 2008, 09:51:08 AM » |
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From information here it looks like there were about 120 cases consolidated in this pet food recall New Jersey settlement: http://whattoeatbook.com/2008/05/24/pet-food-recall-settlement-24-million/
May 24, 2008
The class action lawsuits filed as a result of the pet food recalls last year are inching
toward settlement. A judge in New Jersey consolidated 120 cases and awarded the
plaintiffs $24 million to cover documented expenses related to the illness, death, or
burial of their dogs and cats.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1207133081114
About 120 suits were filed in Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Illinois,
Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Ontario, Oregon,
Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Tennessee, Texas, Wisconsin and WashingtonIf my calculator is working correctly, and math is not my strong suit, that means $6 million divided by 120 cases nets the law firms involved $50,000 per firm involved, plus actual costs recovered, just as a point of reference for other class action suits. |
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« Last Edit: June 20, 2008, 09:57:08 AM by 3catkidneyfailure »
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3catkidneyfailure
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« Reply #74 on: June 25, 2008, 10:11:33 PM » |
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If for whatever reason you received New Jersey consolidated cases claim forms in the mail, which
means you are considered a class member for some action taken in the past, and you want to opt-out
of this settlement, YOU MUST ABSOLUTELY DO IT BY AUGUST 15, 2008, or any rights you have to
act against these defendants will be given up by the terms of the New Jersey settlement.
So call whoever sent you the claim forms, inform them you want to opt-out of the settlement, and submit the opt-out
documents before August 15, 2008. After that date, your right to pursue any other form of legal action will be gone.
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