Re(7): What to do? IP: 173.65.77.82 Posted on March 31, 2009 at 05:41:43 AM by Larry Vincent
To All,
Good comments and good questions. The 2004 13th. Check was paid in Feb 2008. The $100 for retirees and the $50.00 for surviving spouses that was not paid will be paid as part of the interest payment, when it is paid. The interest earned on the 2004 13th. Check will be decided by Judge Neilsen. He will also decide on the attorney fees and costs to be paid, if any. The judge will not hear and rule on these issues until sometime after May 15, 2009, the end of the period to OPY-OUT. Remeber, you must fill out the Option Form sent to you by the Pension Office "ONLY" if you plan to OPT-OUT of the Class Action Suit/Dec Action. If you want to be in the Class, you do not have to do anything. You will be included in the Class automatically. Your decision to be in the Class or opt out of the Class will be your decision, yours alone. We have a legal opinion coming to you in early April which we hope will help you decide whether you want to be in the Class or not. The RF&PA Board has gone to the expense of getting this opinion for you to help you decide. Once the legal opinion is received, you can read it and then decide what you want to do. I believe that we all will get paid by the fund once this mater is resolved. I do not believe that there is any legal way, at LAW, that can prevent the Class Action Attorney from getting paid from some of your money. It all boils down to what the Judge decides. There is a possibility that the judge may decide that this Class Action Suit was founded on tainted information and information that is priviledged. If he rules that way, the Class Action Suit may be thrown out. At that time, the Trustees will most likely pay all eligible retirees and surviving spouses the interest money owed, at Statutory Interest rates of 10-11%. A number of things could happen in this action. On February 24, 2009, former Fund Attorney Jim Loper testified, under oath, that he talked with Atty. Thomas, gave him research for the suit and even wrote some of the lawsuit himself, which he gave to Atty. Thomas. Therefore, the suit may be tainted and could be thrown out. We just have to wait and see. The Judge will make that determination. I do expect that the current fund attorneys will mount a big defense on the "Fruit of the tainted tree" provisions because of Attorney Lopers' involvement. Atty. Loper may have gone way too far in his vendetta against the pension fund. This is a very slippery slope for him to take but he did. His own testimony bears this out. It will be interesting to say the least. I expect we will all get these answers by late June or July of this year. Hopefully this entire matter can be settled and we can cash our checks.
Larry Vincent Replies: There have been no replies.
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