"If you have ever entered into an annual subscription payable in monthly installments via Ancestry.com, a pending class action lawsuit may affect your rights." Those words appear on a recently-published page on Ancestry.com.
The page continues:
All persons who at any time prior to November 3, 2006, entered into one or more annual subscription agreements with MyFamily.com, Inc. through its Ancestry.com website payable in monthly installments.
The Plaintiffs allege that the Class is entitled to statutory damages under the Truth in Lending Act ("TILA") arising from the Defendants' failure to advise Class Members that the difference in price between annual subscriptions paid on a monthly basis and those paid with a one time payment constituted the cost of credit extended by the Defendants on their monthly payment plans. In addition to requesting statutory damages under TILA, Plaintiffs also have requested reasonable attorneys' fees and costs.
The Defendants have at all times asserted that their conduct respecting the matters complained of in this Lawsuit has been and was in all respects entirely proper and lawful. The Defendants assert that the Plaintiffs' claims are meritless and deny all allegations of wrongdoing. The Defendants further assert they entered into this Settlement solely to avoid costs and other burdens of continued litigation. The Defendants contend that, other than for Settlement purposes, this case is inappropriate for class treatment.
Those who are affected by this class action lawsuit will have their subscriptions extended for an extra month at no additional charge. Again, quoting from the web site:
Subject to the Court's approval of the Settlement, and in consideration for the release and compromise of all claims by Class Members, Defendants will provide each Class Member, at no cost, access to all of the Defendants' subscription databases available through the Ancestry.com website for a 31 day period. Those Class Members who have one or more current subscriptions with the Defendants through the Ancestry.com website will have those subscriptions automatically extended for one month at no additional cost.
There are many more details, all written in the finest legal version of the English language. If you are affected by this class action lawsuit, you will want to read the entire text available at http://www.ancestry.com/legal/class.aspx?o_iid=21156&o_lid=21156&o_it=20875
