If you received a Notice it is because you were identified as an eligible Class Member and the Court directed that a Notice be provided to you. You had a right to know about a proposed settlement that has been reached in this class action lawsuit and about all of your options before the Court decided whether to grant final approval of the settlement. The Notice explained the lawsuit, the settlement, your legal rights, what payments were available, who was eligible for them, and how to receive them.

The appeals period has passed with no appeals being initiated. As such this settlement is now considered effective. Payments were issued in October to eligible Class Members.

The Court in charge of this case was the Superior Court of the State of Washington, County of Skagit. The case is Spencer v. City of Mount Vernon (the “Lawsuit”). The person who filed the Lawsuit, Shannon Spencer, is the Plaintiff and the entity they sued, the City of Mount Vernon (“Mount Vernon”), is the Defendant.

Plaintiff claimed that Mount Vernon violated Washington’s Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, RCW 49.58, by requesting that applicants provide their salary history on applications for employment with the City of Mount Vernon. The Lawsuit sought, among other things, damages for the violation.

Mount Vernon denied and continues to deny all of the claims made in the Lawsuit, as well as all charges of wrongdoing or liability against it.

The Parties negotiated a settlement that allows the Plaintiff, the Class members, and Mount Vernon to avoid the risks and costs of lengthy and uncertain litigation and the uncertainty of a trial and appeals. It also allowed Class members to obtain payment without further delay. The Plaintiff and his attorneys believe the settlement is in the best interest of all Class members. The Court did not decide in favor of the Plaintiff or Mount Vernon, and this settlement does not mean that Mount Vernon did anything wrong.

In a class action, the Plaintiff (also called Class Representative) sues on behalf of people who have similar claims. Together, all these people are called a Class or the Class members. One court and one judge resolves the issues for all Class members who do not exclude themselves. In this case, the court has certified the Class for settlement purposes only.

The Parties negotiated a Settlement Agreement that allowed the Plaintiff, the Class members, and Mount Vernon to avoid the risks and costs of lengthy and uncertain litigation and the uncertainty of a trial and appeals. It also allows Class members to obtain payment without further delay. The Plaintiff and his attorneys believe the settlement is in the best interest of all Class members. The Court did not decide in favor of the Plaintiff or Mount Vernon, and this settlement does not mean that Mount Vernon did anything wrong.

You were eligible to be part of this settlement as a Settlement Class Member if you applied for one or more jobs with the City of Mount Vernon at any time from July 28, 2019 to March 18, 2022 and received a Settlement Notice.

Mount Vernon agreed to pay a total of $994,932.50 to settle the Lawsuit (“Gross Settlement Fund”). The Gross Settlement Fund covered settlement payments to the Class members, a Service Award to the Class Representative, Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees and costs, and the Settlement Administrator’s costs and fees.

The Class Fund is the Gross Settlement Fund less Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees and costs, the Class Representative Award, and Settlement Administrator’s fees awarded by the Court. Each Settlement Class member who did not opt out received an equal share of the Class Fund.

The Class Fund is the Gross Settlement Fund less Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees and costs, the Class Representative Award, and Settlement Administrator’s fees awarded by the Court. Each Settlement Class member who does not opt out will receive an equal share of the Class Fund. Estimated payment information can be found in the Notice that was sent to you. Payments will be characterized as non-wage compensation.

The Class Fund is the Gross Settlement Fund less Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees and costs, the Class Representative Award, and Settlement Administrator’s fees awarded by the Court. Each Settlement Class member who did not opt out received an equal share of the Class Fund.

All Settlement Class members who did not out-out of the settlement received an Individual Allocation payment in the mail. If your phone number or address changed, you must provide the updated information to the Settlement Administrator as soon as possible to ensure you receive your payment. The Settlement Administrator’s contact information is:

Spencer v. City of Mount Vernon
c/o JND Legal Administration
P.O. Box 91420
Seattle, WA 98111
Email: Info@SpencervCityofMountVernon.com
Phone: 1-844-717-0627

The Court held a Final Approval Hearing at 9:00 a.m. on August 11, 2023 to consider whether the Settlement was fair, reasonable, and adequate, and decide whether to approve the Settlement. At the hearing, the Judge reviewed any properly-filed written objections and also considered whether to approve attorneys’ fees and costs to Class Counsel and the service award to the Class Representative. On August 14, 2023 the Judge approved the settlement. The appeals period has passed with no appeals being initiated. As such this settlement is now considered effective. Payments were issued in October to eligible Class Members.

Participating Settlement Class Members shall have 90 days after the date the Individual Settlement Allocation checks are mailed to cash their checks.  Any Individual Settlement Allocation check that is not cashed by the Settlement Check Cashing Deadline shall become void and subject to a stop payment order.

No money will revert to City of Mount Vernon. At the end of the distribution, any amount remaining in the Settlement fund for uncashed checks will be sent to the cy pres recipient. Cy pres is the legal term for when money is donated to a non-profit organization. In this case the cy pres recipient is Legal Foundation of Washington, a non-profit organization dedicated to civil legal aid, policy reform, and systemic advocacy in the State of Washington.

The Settlement Agreement does not provide for the Administrator to distribute funds via direct deposit. Individual Settlement Allocations were only sent via paper check.

Individual Settlement Allocations shall be treated as non-wage payments and the Settlement Administrator shall issue appropriate IRS Forms 1099. We are not able to provide you with tax advice and suggest contacting your tax adviser with any questions.

Your legal rights and options in this Settlement were as follows:

You were able to choose to do NOTHING and remain in the Class, release your claims, and receive money automatically in the form of a payment mailed to you.

You were able to EXCLUDE YOURSELF (opt-out) and get out of the Lawsuit. Excluded individuals do not receive any money from the Settlement but keep any rights they might have to file their own separate lawsuit for the same claims at their own expense. The deadline to exclude yourself from the lawsuit was June 16, 2023. This deadline has now passed. 

You were able to OBJECT OR COMMENT on the Settlement. With this option an individual was able to stay in the Lawsuit and object that the Settlement is unfair or inadequate or comment in its favor. The deadline to object or comment on this lawsuit was June 16, 2023. This deadline has now passed. 

As a Class Member, now that the Court has approved the settlement, you have given up your right to sue Mount Vernon and other related entities for the claims being resolved by this settlement. 

The claims being resolved by this settlement are: any and all claims for violations of equal pay and opportunities with Mount Vernon, relating back to the full extent of the federal and state statutes of limitations and continuing through March 18, 2022, including without limitation, equal pay and opportunity claims, related discrimination and retaliation claims, and related claims for penalties, interest, liquidated damages, exemplary damages, attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses. For the avoidance of doubt, the foregoing release includes, but is not limited to, all claims alleging that a request for prior wage and/or salary history as part of your application for employment with Mount Vernon violated equal pay laws.

The specific claims you are releasing are described in Paragraph 2 of the Settlement Agreement. You will be “releasing” Mount Vernon and all related people or entities as described in Paragraph 2 of the Settlement Agreement.  “Released Parties” are described in the Definitions at the beginning, section (R).

If you did nothing, you automatically received the payment to which you were entitled to under the Settlement and released your claims against City of Mount Vernon. The releases and benefits are detailed in the Notice available on the Important Documents page of this website.

If you submitted a timely, valid request to opt-out of the settlement, you were not entitled to any benefits of the settlement and did not receive a settlement payment. You are not be bound by any judgment in this case and do not give up any right to sue Mount Vernon for the claims that this settlement resolves. You may start your own lawsuit or be part of any different lawsuit relating to the claims in this case.

Objecting is simply telling the Court that you don’t think the Settlement should be approved. You could have objected only if you stayed in the Class. Excluding yourself is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Class. If you excluded yourself, you cannot object because the case no longer affects you, and you did not receive any payment from the Settlement.

To Opt-Out, you needed to send the Settlement Administrator a written notice stating that you opt-out of the settlement, postmarked no later than June 16, 2023. This deadline has now passed. 

If you were a Settlement Class member and did not opt-out of the settlement, you had the option to object to the settlement if you did not like it or a portion of it. To object, you needed to file with the Court and mail copies to Class Counsel and Mount Vernon’s Counsel a written notice stating that you object to the settlement in Spencer v. The City of Mount Vernon., Case No. 22-2-00461-29.

Your objection needed to be filed with the Clerk of the Superior Court of the State of Washington, County of Skagit, 205 W Kincaid Street, Room 103, Mount Vernon, WA 98273 no later than June 16, 2023. You also needed to mail copies of your objection to Class Counsel and Mount Vernon’s Counsel postmarked no later than June 16, 2023. This deadline has now passed. 

The Court held a Final Approval Hearing at 9:00 a.m. on August 11, 2023 in the Superior Court of the State of Washington, County of Skagit, 205 W Kincaid Street, Mount Vernon, WA 98273 to consider whether the Settlement Agreement is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and decide whether to approve the Settlement. At the hearing, the Judge reviewed any properly-filed written objections and also considered whether to approve attorneys’ fees and costs to Class Counsel and the service award to the Class Representative. On August 14, 2023 the Judge approved the settlement. The appeals period has passed with no appeals being initiated. As such this settlement is now considered effective. Payments were issued in October to eligible Class Members.

You did not have to attend the Final Approval Hearing. Class Counsel answered any questions the Court had. However, you were welcome to attend at your own expense.

The Court appointed Timothy W. Emery of Emery Reddy, PLLC, 600 Stewart Street, Suite 1100, Seattle, WA 98101 to represent Settlement Class members. These lawyers are called Class Counsel. You will not be charged for these lawyers. 

You did not need to hire your own lawyer because Class Counsel are working on your behalf, and you did not need to do anything to receive benefits under the Settlement.

The Judge has ruled that the settlement is approved. The appeals period has passed with no appeals being initiated. As such this settlement is now considered effective. Payments were issued in October to eligible Class Members. Class Counsel asked the Court to award attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses in the amount of $310,000 and also requested approval of a service award for the Class Representative in the amount of $25,000. These amounts, as well as the costs of notice and settlement administration, will be paid out of the settlement fund.

If you have moved since you last applied to work for City of Mount Vernon, please provide the Settlement Administrator with your current mailing address by either mailing or emailing a letter requesting that your information be updated.

Please be sure to provide your initial address of record, as well as your updated address information. This is necessary to ensure the proper record is being updated.

Please contact the Settlement Administrator at 1-844-717-0627 or Info@SpencervCityofMountVernon.com.