In December members of Ballard's Olympic Athletic Club filed a class action lawsuit against the club owners for refusing to honor lifetime memberships that the club sold for thousands of dollars in the 1980s. This week the parties reached a settlement.
Lawyer Toby Marshall, who represents the lifetime member in the class action lawsuit against the Olympic Athletic Club, informs us that the parties have reached a settlement.
At the end of November, 2011, lifetime members received a letter stating that the club had been sold and the new owner did not agree to service the lifetime memberships beyond December 31.
In December some members came together and filed a class action lawsuit against the club owners for refusing to honor lifetime memberships that the club sold for thousands of dollars in the 1980s.
The settlement is on behalf of approximately 1,175 OAC members, said Marshall. But in order to become final, the settlement will have to be approved by the Court, a process that will take four months or more.
In the meantime, however, members may continue to use the club.
If the settlement is approved, the OAC will honor the lifetime memberships of the individuals who purchased their non-dues memberships prior to July 26, 1987, for the life of the current holder.
For individuals who purchased their non-dues memberships after July 25, 1987, OAC will honor each such membership for another 14 years.
Individuals who signed new memberships after receiving termination letters from the club will be given 90 days after approval of the settlement to reinstate their old membership (as modified by the settlement).
The 1,175 proposed class members will automatically be included in the settlement, and benefit from it, if it is approved by the Court. They do not have to do anything to accept or join in the settlement.
The Defendants will pay the attorneys' fees and costs incurred by Plaintiffs in bringing and settling the suit.
If the Court grants preliminary approval to the settlement, detailed notice packets will be mailed out to all of the class members.
"We anticipate this will take 6 to 8 weeks for the Court to reach a preliminary decision. Final approval will not occur for another 4 or 5 months," said Marshall. "We are very pleased with the settlement and believe it is in the best interests of the OAC members."
