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LAWSUITS NEWS & LEGAL INFORMATION

Settlement Proposed in Automotive Refinishing Paint Products Class Action


This is a settlement for the Automotive lawsuit.

A settlement has been proposed in a class action lawsuit against BASF Aktiengesellschaft, BASF Coatings AG, and BASF Corporation; Sherwin-Williams Company and Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes; PPG Industries, Inc. ("PPG"); Akzo Nobel Car Refinishes B.V. and Akzo Nobel Coatings Inc. (collectively "Akzo"); and E.I. duPont de Nemours and Company, and DuPont Performance Coatings, Inc.

The suit was brougth on behalf of residents of Vermont who indirectly purchased automotive refinishing paint products in that state between January 1, 1993 and September 24, 2004 (the class).

If you had all or part of the paint on your vehicle refinished during the class period, or you are an automobile refinisher or auto repair shop who purchased paint during that period, you may be entitled to get some of your money back. There is a class action lawsuit in which several paint companies have settled claims for a total of $780,000. That money may be available to be divided up among people who fit into the categories described above.

Thus, you are hereby notified that this action has been preliminarily certified as a class action for settlement purposes and that separate settlements have been proposed with each of the five Defendants in the following amounts: (i) Defendants BASF: $125,000; (ii) Defendants The Sherwin-Williams: $125,000; Defendant PPG: $240,000; Defendants Akzo: $90,000; and Defendants DuPont: $200,000.

As part of the proposed settlements, the claims against all Defendants will be dismissed with prejudice. A hearing will be held to determine whether the proposed settlements should be approved by the Court as fair, reasonable and adequate.

Indirect purchasers are persons or entities who purchased automotive refinishing paint products from someone other than the manufacturer of the product. For example, indirect purchasers include people or entities who obtained repairs to their vehicles that required the use of automotive refinishing paint products. Indirect purchasers also include repair shops and refinishers who purchased automotive refinishing paint products from independent suppliers, such as jobbers or warehouse distributors, as opposed to the manufacturers of such products.

Under the proposed settlement, a) those who indirectly purchased Automotive Refinishing Paint for the purpose of applying it to motor vehicles, such as repair or custom refinishing shops, and b) individuals without insurance who purchased refinishing paint as part of a repair to their vehicle will be entitled to submit a claim to collect a portion of the monies expended for such paint refinishing products. Those individuals with insurance will also be bound by the settlement. However, due to the expenses involved in identifying and notifying such individuals of the settlement and the administrative expenses of calculating the value of their claims, such individuals will not be entitled to submit claims and will share in the settlement solely to the extent that 25% of the available settlement funds will be donated to a Vermont charitable organization whose mission is related to the use and/or repair of motor vehicles.

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Published on Jun-8-09


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