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GOODYEAR SETTLEMENT WEBSITE
www.goodyearERISAsettlement.com
Welcome to the Goodyear ERISA Settlement
website. This website has been established to keep class members informed about
the Class Action Settlement reached in In re The Goodyear Tire & Rubber
Company ERISA Litigation, U.S. District Court, Northern District of Ohio
Case No. 5:03-cv-2182.
Background
As described in more detail in the Consolidated
Amended Complaint filed in the ERISA litigation, this lawsuit concerns
allegations that Defendants breached fiduciary duties they purportedly owed to
participants and beneficiaries in the Plan during the Class Period. The
Defendants deny the allegations. Copies of Plaintiffs’ Consolidated Amended
Complaint and other documents filed in the lawsuit are available via the
Document Links on this website.
The Class
The Court has certified the
following Settlement Class:
All persons who were participants in or
beneficiaries of (a) The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company Employee Savings
Plan for Salaried Employees, or (b) The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
Employee Savings Plan for Bargaining Unit Employees at any time between
January 1, 1998 and December 12, 2007, and whose accounts included
investments in Goodyear stock, excluding any Defendants or their immediate
family members.
The Settlement
At the Fairness Hearing held on October 16, 2008, the Court approved the
Settlement and the Plan of Allocation. As part of the Settlement, the Defendants agreed to
pay the sum of $8,375,000 (Eight Million Three Hundred Seventy-Five Thousand Dollars)
in cash from available insurance policies. After payment of and/or establishment of
reserves for taxes, Court-approved costs, attorneys’ fees, and expenses (including any
Court-approved compensation to be paid to Lead Plaintiffs), the Settlement proceeds
will be paid to a Commingled Trust for the Plan. Once implementation expenses have
been paid, the remaining amount will be allocated to the plan accounts of members of
the Settlement Class according to a Plan of Allocation approved by the Court. If
necessary, a subtrust will be created for those members of the Settlement Class who
no longer have Plan accounts. In addition, the Settlement contains several
non-monetary settlement terms relating to current and future plan participants.
On October 22, 2008,
the Court issued an order granting Plaintiffs’ motion for attorneys’ fees, costs, and
class representative compensation. The appeals period in this matter has expired with
no appeal being filed and as such, the Settlement has become Final.
Disbursement Information
The Settlement Disbursement to Settlement Class members began in late March.
If you qualified as a Settlement Class member and are a current member of the
Plan, then your Plan account has already been automatically credited with your
Settlement award amount. If you have any questions about your Plan account,
you should contact the Plan administrator.
If you qualified as a Settlement Class member but do not have a current
account in the Plan, then an election form was mailed to you in late March. The
form was to be returned to the Settlement Administrator within 30 days. If – as of June 5, 2009 – the Settlement Administrator has not received a
completed Election Form, the Settlement Class member award will be treated as
described below:
$1,000 or less: Your benefit will be paid to you by check and sent to your
last known address. Withholding and tax consequences will apply.
More than $1,000: Your benefit will be deposited into a Plan account for you.
You will need to keep the Goodyear Plan Administrator informed of any changes in
your address.
If a Settlement Class member requested a rollover on an Election Form but the
amount of the award is less than $200, the distribution cannot be rolled over
and a check will be issued to the member directly.
Settlement Class members who do not have current Plan accounts should
receive their disbursements in mid to late June.
Please note that under the Court-approved Plan of Allocation, if your share
of the Settlement is calculated to be less than $15, you will receive no
payment.
Please DO NOT contact the Court or Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company
regarding the Settlement. If you have additional questions, please send an
email to the Settlement Plan Administrator at:
claimsadministrator@goodyearerisa.com. |
