The Animation Wage-Fixing Lawsuit

The wage-fixing web: chart courtesy Bloomberg Graphics

Here's what you need to know about the wage-fixing lawsuit. It's real. Make sure your contact details are correct.

www.animationlawsuit.com

If you worked at any of the following companies during the time periods listed, read the FAQ below to see if your job title is listed. If yes, you're a class member.

• Pixar (2004 - 2010)
• Lucasfilm Ltd., LLC (2004 - 2010)
• DreamWorks Animation SKG, Inc. (2004 - 2010)
• The Walt Disney Company (2004 - 2010)
• Sony Pictures Animation Inc. and Sony Pictures Imageworks Inc. (2004 - 2010)
• Blue Sky Studios, Inc. (2005 - 2010)
• Two Pic MC LLC formerly known as ImageMovers Digital LLC (2007 - 2010)

http://www.animationlawsuit.com/faqs.aspx


If you think you are in the class, but have not ever received anything in the mail, it is likely because the Class Administrators don't have a correct address for you. Contact them and update your address.

Or, maybe you threw away the paperwork, thinking it was a scam. Either way, contact the class administrators to confirm whether you are in the class or not.

http://www.animationlawsuit.com/contact-us.aspx



Here's the timeline of some key dates - some court documents courtesy of Deadline:

• September 8, 2014 - Wage-fixing lawsuit filed by Robert Nitsch, Jr.
• March 31, 2016 - Blue Sky offers $5.95 million ( 25% of calculated damages )
• April 29, 2016 - Sony offers $13 million ( 16.7% of calculated damages )
• Nov 11, 2016 - Final settlement approved for Blue Sky and Sony
• Oct 17, 2016 - DreamWorks offers $50 million ( 39.3% of calculated damages )
• Jan 19, 2017 - DreamWorks settlement approved
• Jan 31, 2017 - Disney offers $100 million ( 33.5% of calculated damages )
• Mar 2, 2017 - proposed hearing to approve Disney settlement - San Jose, CA

Estimated damages of ~$170 million in total have been calculated by Dr. Orley Ashenfelter, an economics professor at Princeton.

The calendar for Judge Lucy H. Koh is below - March 2nd is the next scheduled hearing, to be held in San Jose, CA.

http://www.cand.uscourts.gov/lhk

It has been estimated that there are over 10,000 affected artists. It's not possible to predict what an individual award might be after attorney fees. For the High-Tech lawsuit, the settlement amount was estimated at $4,000.

If you're in the class, and the Class Administrators have your contact details, you will be notified of the results of the settlement.