endosettlement

You received a check in the mail for the Endosurgical Settlement because you or someone from your organization filed a claim in the Settlement, and your claim was determined to be timely and valid. This check represents your award in this Settlement.

The lawsuit claims that the Defendants violated antitrust laws by bundling endosurgical products with other products and by including anticompetitive provisions in their contracts with hospitals and group purchasing organizations. The lawsuit claimed that as a result, purchasers paid more for endosurgical products than they otherwise would have paid. The Defendants deny that they did anything wrong or that prices were too high.

In a class action, one or more people called class representatives (in this case Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center and Bamberg County Memorial Hospital and Nursing Center) sue on behalf of people who have similar claims. All these people are a class or class members. One court resolves the issues for all class members, except for those who exclude themselves from the class. U.S. District Judge James V. Selna is in charge of this class action.

The Court did not decide in favor of the Plaintiffs or the Defendants. Instead, both sides agreed to a Settlement. That way, they avoid the cost of a trial, and the Class Members affected will get compensation. The Class Representatives and the attorneys think the Settlement is best for all Class Members.

Who is in the Settlement?

To see if you will get money from this Settlement, you first have to decide if you are a Class Member.

Judge Selna decided that everyone who fits one of these two descriptions is a Class Member:

You are a member of the Direct Purchaser Settlement Class if you fit this description: All persons and entities that made purchases of Defendants’ Relevant Endosurgical Products in the United States directly from Defendants at any time during the Class Period.

You are a member of the Indirect Purchaser Settlement Class if you fit this description: All persons and entities that made purchases of Defendants’ Relevant Endosurgical Products in the United States other than directly from Defendants at any time during the Class Period.

The Defendants are Johnson & Johnson, Johnson & Johnson Health Care Systems, Inc., Ethicon, Inc., and Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc.

The Relevant Endosurgical Products are endosurgical trocars, clip appliers, specimen retrieval bags, endocutters, insufflation needles and tubing, surgical scissors, graspers, dissectors, surgical staplers, surgical procedure trays or kits containing these products, as well as related accessories. The Class Period is from December 19, 2001 through October 20, 2008.

It is possible to be a member of both Classes if you made both direct and indirect purchases.

The Defendants, their parents, subsidiaries, and affiliates, and the federal government are not Class Members.

If you are still not sure whether you are included, you can ask for free help. You can call 1-866-722-3520 or visit this website for more information.

The Proposed Settlement Benefits–What You Get

The Defendants have agreed to create a $13 million Settlement Fund for Class Members who send in a valid Claim Form.
The Defendants have also agreed to comply with the following requirements with respect to bundled contracts with hospitals and group purchasing organizations that cover products of both Ethicon, Inc. and Ethicon Endo-Surgery, Inc. for a period of five years:

Such contracts will include the existing “Carve-out” provision for all Non-full line suppliers. The Carve-out excludes purchases of certain products purchased from Defendants’ competitors from the determination of market share discount tiers.

Such contracts will be terminable at will by customers on 30 days’ notice.

Such contracts will not prohibit competitive evaluations.

In addition, the Defendants have agreed to pay the costs of notice and administration of this Settlement, up to $500,000. This amount is in addition to the Settlement Fund.

Your share of the Settlement Fund will depend on (a) the number of valid Claim Forms received, (b) the amount of your purchases of Relevant Endosurgical Products during the Class Period, (c) whether those purchases were direct or indirect, and (d) the state in which you made those purchases. The cash amount of the Settlement Fund will be divided among direct purchasers from all states and indirect purchasers from the twenty-six states listed below, in proportion to their total purchases of Relevant Endosurgical Products during the Class Period.

Indirect purchasers in the following twenty-six states may receive a payment: Alabama, Arizona, California, the District of Columbia, Florida, Hawaii, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, South Dakota, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. If you made only indirect purchases in states not listed above, you will not receive a payment.

For example, a Class Member from Connecticut that made at least some direct purchases can receive a cash payment, but a Class Member from Connecticut that made only indirect purchases cannot receive a cash payment. However, a Class Member from California that made only indirect purchases can receive a cash payment and will be treated the same as a direct purchaser.

How You Get a Payment–Submitting A Claim Form

Unfortunately, the deadline to file a Claim Form has passed.

Unfortunately, the deadline to file a Claim Form has passed.

However, you could have filed your own Claim Form for free. Assistance is available from the Claims Administrator at no cost to you.

There are companies that may have contacted you when they learned about this Settlement and offered to help you file your Claim Form in exchange for a share of your payment or other compensation. You did not need to pay someone to file your claim for you.

If you did choose to have someone else file your Claim Form for you, then you were required to complete Part 4 of the Claim Form.

On August 19, 2011, the District Court approved Plaintiffs’ Ex Parte Motion for Distribution of Settlement Fund of $8,752,160.09 to the 1,399 authorized claimants. This sum was distributed on September 21, 2011 according to the Court approved Plan of Allocation.

A copy of the Order Granting Plaintiffs’ Ex Parte Motion for Distribution of Settlement Fund may be viewed by clicking the Court Documents link at the right.

A minimum payment of $50.00 will be used in the distribution of the Settlement Fund. For example, if the pro rata share of the distribution is $37.49, and the minimum payment is $50.00, the award amount will be $50.00. If, however, the pro rata share of the distribution is $50.01, the award will be $50.01.

In addition, any claimant whose actual loss amount, as compared to Recognized Claim Amount, is less than $50.00 will be paid the actual loss amount and not the minimum payment.

The remaining authorized claimants will receive a pro rata distribution based upon the ration of the amount of the Settlement Fund divided by the total amount of the remaining Eligible Claims.

A copy of the Order Granting Plaintiffs’ Ex Parte Motion for Distribution of Settlement Fund may be viewed by clicking the Court Documents link at the right.

Unless you excluded yourself, staying in the Class means that you can’t sue, continue to sue, or be part of any other lawsuit against the Defendants about the legal issues in this case. It also means that all of the Court’s orders will apply to you and legally bind you. The Settlement Agreement describes exactly the legal claims that you give up if you stay in the Class.

Excluding Yourself from the Settlement

If you don’t want a payment from this Settlement, but you want to keep the right to sue or continue to sue the Defendants, on your own, about the legal issues in this case, then you must take steps to get out. This is called excluding yourself - or sometimes referred to as opting out of the Class.

Unfortunately, the deadline to file a Request for Exclusion has passed.

No. Unless you excluded yourself, you gave up any right to sue the Defendants for the claims that this Settlement resolves. If you have a pending lawsuit, speak to your lawyer in that case immediately. You must have excluded yourself from this Class to continue your own lawsuit.

No. If you decided to exclude yourself you are not entitled to any money from this Settlement. But, you may sue, continue to sue, or be part of a different lawsuit against the Defendants.

The Lawyers Representing You

The Court asked the law firms of Hausfeld LLP and Cohen, Milstein, Sellers & Toll, P.L.L.C. to represent the Direct Purchaser Settlement Class, and the law firm of Ball and Scott to represent the Indirect Purchaser Settlement Class. These lawyers are called Class Counsel. You will not be charged for these lawyers. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

Objecting to the Settlement

You can tell the Court that you don’t agree with the Settlement or some part of it.

Unfortunately, the deadline to file an Object has passed.

Objecting is simply telling the Court that you don’t like something about the Settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Class. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object because the case no longer affects you.

If You Do Nothing

If you did nothing, you’ll get no money from the Settlement. You won’t be able to start a lawsuit, continue with a lawsuit, or be part of any other lawsuit against the Defendants about the legal issues in this case, ever again.

Reissuing My Check

Please notify the Claims Administrator by calling the toll free number 1-866-722-3520. You also may email info@endosettlement.com or write to Endosurgical Settlement, c/o Complete Claim Solutions, LLC, P.O. Box 24678, West Palm Beach, FL 33416. Once the Claims Administrator has been notified, allow 2-4 weeks for processing.

Some banks will cash checks made payable to a former name if presented with supporting documentation. Please contact your bank to see if that is their policy. If not, you may send your check back to us with documentation supporting your name change. After reviewing your documents we may be able to issue a new check in your new name.

Endosurgical Settlement
c/o Complete Claim Solutions, LLC
P.O. Box 24678
West Palm Beach, FL 33416

Or by email info@endosettlement.com

Getting More Information

The Notice summarizes the Settlement. More details are in a Settlement Agreement. You can get a copy of the Settlement Agreement by clicking on the “Court Documents” link at the left, calling 1-866-722-3520 or by writing to the address located in the “Contact Information” link at the left.

You can also find a copy of the Order Granting Plaintiffs’ Ex Parte Motion for Distribution of Settlement Fund by clicking the “Court Documents” link at the right.

You can call 1-866-722-3520; write to the address located in the “Contact Information” link at the left; or visit this website for more information, where you will find answers to common questions about the Settlement, the plan of allocation, or reissuing your check.

Yes. You can get a copy of the Relevant Endosurgical Products by clicking on the “Relevant Endosurgical Products List” link at the left.