What the Parker appeal may cost Retirees IP: 173.168.130.39 Posted on September 21, 2011 at 00:27:17 AM by Dennis Ribaya
20 September 2010
To: All Retirees:
As most of you are aware the F&P Pension Board Trustees have voted to go along with Travelers’ Insurance Companies Attorney Patrick Gonyea’s recommendation to appeal Judge Richard Nielsen’s decision concerning Attorney Wayne Thomas’s fees at the 2nd District Court of Appeals. If the Pension Fund prevails in this appeal, all eligible retirees may be on the hook for Attorney Wayne Thomas’s fees of $1,160,177.56, which also includes court costs and interest.
The Pension Fund is currently holding our interest money from the 2004 13th check in a special account they call The Common Fund. Currently there is $2,141,545.06 in this fund waiting distribution to retirees who are eligible for benefits as a result of the Parker lawsuit. However, the Pension Fund is on record stating that the “retirees should pay” Wayne Thomas’s fees out their proceeds from The Common Fund. If the Pension Board were to vote to disburse the $2,141,545.06 in The Common Fund to the approximately 1400 eligible retirees and surviving spouses, each retiree would receive about $1,529.68 and each surviving spouse would receive $764.84. It appears, that’s not going to happen.
If the Pension Fund should prevail in the appeal, and if we have to pay Attorney Wayne Thomas’s fees and costs, then we would only have $981,367.50 left to divide between approximately 1400 eligible retirees and surviving spouses, giving each retiree $700.98 instead of $1,529.68 and each surviving spouse would receive $350.49 instead of $764.84. Each retiree would have had to pay Attorney Wayne Thomas $828.70 and each surviving spouse would have to pay $414.35 for winning a case that should never have been filed if the F&P Pension Fund had not made the error denying the 2004 13th check payment in May of 2005.
Remember this, if Retiree, John Parker had not filed the lawsuit against the F&P Pension Fund for that egregious mistake, we would have never received the $5,700 for the 2004 13th check. We will have to wait and see what will happen to the rest of our money.
Fraternally,
Dennis Ribaya
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