KamberLaw Announces $2 Million Settlement Award to Public Interest Groups

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--In an $11.5 million settlement resolving a federal class action, In re ATI Tech. HDCP Litigation, distribution of almost $2 million in funding to various public interest and privacy groups will commence immediately. In addition, class members who submitted claims will each receive a new $135 ATI graphics card during the month of March. The settlement, which received final approval by the United States District Court in the Northern District of California on September 11, 2009, entitled consumers who purchased various “HDCP Ready” ATI graphics cards to submit claims for new graphics cards. The settlement also provided for one of the largest “cy pres” funds in a consumer class action during 2009. The defendant, ATI Technologies, Inc., purchased by Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. during the litigation, has denied any wrongful conduct.

“While it took years of hard-fought litigation and negotiation to get to this point, the result certainly demonstrates that it was worth the effort”

The substantial cy pres award will be distributed among the following 15 organizations, which were selected by counsel and designated by court order: Electronic Privacy Information Center (EPIC); Computers for Youth; Consumer Action; School on Wheels, Inc.; SeniorNet; Bet Tzedek Legal Services (Los Angeles, California); East Bay Community Law Center; Legal Aid Society of San Diego, Inc.; National Consumer Law Center; One Laptop per Child; Public Counsel (Los Angeles, California); Public Justice Foundation; Katharine and George Alexander Community Law Center; Stanford Public Interest Law Foundation; and Public Law Center (Orange County, California). U.S. District Judge James Ware found each of these groups advanced the public interest and the interests of the class. See http://aticlassaction.com/ for complete details.

New York attorney Scott A. Kamber of KamberLaw, LLC (formerly of KamberEdelson, LLC) and Los Angeles-based David Parisi of Parisi & Havens LLP, were appointed by the Court to serve as lead counsel for the class. “This settlement shows the good things that can be accomplished by a class action—a tangible benefit available to every member of the class coupled with a substantial public benefit in the form of a cy pres.” explained Kamber. “While it took years of hard-fought litigation and negotiation to get to this point, the result certainly demonstrates that it was worth the effort,” said Parisi.

About KamberLaw: Scott A. Kamber, one of the most recognized names in consumer class actions, founded KamberLaw to advance consumer rights in the area of digital privacy and security. Kamber is best known for serving as lead counsel in class actions that have strengthened consumer protections and brought meaningful relief in the first year of litigation. In recent years, Kamber served as lead counsel in nationwide class actions that resolved the contaminated pet food recall ($24 million), lead paint contamination with Thomas the Tank Engine & Friends ($30 million), numerous cases of defective digital rights management software on music and computer game CDs and DVDs and, most recently, the Facebook Beacon privacy matter (approval pending). With offices in New York and California, KamberLaw is committed to advancing the cause of consumer rights from coast to coast.

About Parisi & Havens LLP: Parisi & Havens LLP is a boutique law firm that specializes in complex consumer class actions with an emphasis in technology and insurance cases. In addition to the firm’s consumer class actions, Parisi & Havens LLP counts as its clients Fortune 500 Companies and several banks. In each area in which they practice, the firm and its partners have built a reputation in the community for representing clients in cutting-edge litigation with skill, tenacity, and integrity. The principals of the firm, David C. Parisi and Suzanne Havens Beckman, have recovered in excess of $200 million for their clients in the past ten years alone.