The Notice was court-authorized and of a proposed Settlement in a class action lawsuit, Chatman v. Euromarket Designs, Inc. d/b/a Crate & Barrel, Case No. 2018 CH 09277, pending in the Circuit Court of Cook County, Illinois, County Department, Chancery Division. Unless otherwise stated, capitalized terms used herein are defined in the Settlement Agreement. The Settlement would resolve a lawsuit alleging that workers were required to provide their biometric identifiers and/or biometric information for timekeeping purposes without first providing them with legally-required written disclosures and obtaining written consent in accordance with the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, 740 ILCS 14.1 et seq. (“BIPA”).

Crate & Barrel and the other Released Parties contest these claims and deny that any of them violated BIPA. However, Crate & Barrel has agreed to settle the matter to avoid further costly, distracting, and time-consuming litigation without any admission or finding of wrongdoing.

If you received a Notice, you have been identified as someone who may have scanned or otherwise used a finger, hand, or palm (or any portion thereof) or any other biometric identifier or information to enroll in or clock into or out of Crate & Barrel’s and/or CB2’s timekeeping system in the state of Illinois from July 24, 2013, to March 12, 2024. Without making any finding as to the merits of this case, the Court has granted Preliminary Approval of the Settlement Agreement and has conditionally certified the Settlement Class for purposes of settlement only. The Notice explains the nature of the class action lawsuit, the terms of the Settlement, and the legal rights and obligations of the Settlement Class Members. Please read the instructions and explanations below so that you can better understand your rights.

BIPA generally prohibits private companies from capturing, obtaining, storing, transferring, disclosing, and/or using the biometric identifiers, which are defined to include fingerprints or a scan of hand geometry, and/or biometric information, which is based on an individual’s biometric identifiers and used to identify that individual, without first providing certain written disclosures and obtaining written consent. This lawsuit alleges Crate & Barrel violated BIPA by requiring workers to have their fingerprints scanned for timekeeping purposes without first providing written disclosures or obtaining written consent. Crate & Barrel denies these allegations, denies violations of BIPA or any other law, and denies all liability in the Action.

Cash Payments. The Settlement provides that each Settlement Class Member is entitled to a gross payment of approximately $1,350.45, which the Parties estimate will result in a check for approximately $865 out of the Net Settlement Fund after applicable deductions described below.

Crate & Barrel has agreed to create a Settlement Fund in the total amount of $2,420,000 for the Settlement Class to fully resolve the Action. The amount of the Settlement Fund may be adjusted up if it is determined that the number of members of the Settlement Class, as defined in the Settlement Agreement, exceeds 1,792. If the Court grants Final Approval of the Settlement, all Settlement Class Members who do not timely and properly exclude themselves from the Settlement (a Qualified Settlement Class Member) will receive a payment out of the Settlement Fund, less Court-approved deductions. Specifically, the attorneys who brought this lawsuit (listed below) will ask the Court to award them attorneys’ fees of up to 35% of the Settlement Fund, or Eight Hundred Forty-Seven Thousand Dollars and Zero Cents ($847,000), plus costs and expenses not to exceed One Thousand Dollars ($1,000.00), for the substantial time, expense, and effort expended in investigating the facts, litigating the case, and negotiating the Settlement. The Settlement Class Representative also will apply to the Court for a payment of up to $7,500.00 for her time, effort, and service in this matter. Finally, Administrative Expenses up to $18,000 shall be paid out of the Settlement Fund.

The Settlement Administrator will issue a check to each Qualified Class Member following Final Approval of the Settlement. The checks will expire and become void 180 days after they are issued. However, within ninety-one (91) days of issuance of the settlement checks, the Settlement Administrator will send a reminder post-card (including by e-mail if available) to affected Settlement Class Members. Any uncashed check amounts by the end of the applicable expiration period will be redistributed on a pro rata basis to those Settlement Class Members who cashed their initial settlement check. The redistribution checks will expire and become void 180 days after they are issued. Any uncashed funds following the redistribution period will be remitted to the Illinois Equal Justice Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit charity.

To resolve this matter without the expense, delay, and uncertainties of litigation, the Parties have reached a Settlement that resolves all claims against the Released Parties. The Settlement requires Crate & Barrel to pay money into a Settlement Fund to cover payments to the Settlement Class, Administrative Expenses, the Fee Award to Settlement Class Counsel, and the Service Award to the Class Representative, if such payments are approved by the Court. The Settlement is not an admission of wrongdoing by Crate & Barrel or the Released Parties and does not imply that there has been, or would be, any finding that Crate & Barrel or the Released Parties violated the law if the Parties were to litigate the matter. Crate & Barrel and the Released Parties deny any liability, wrongdoing, or legal violations of any kind related to the claims and contentions asserted in the Action.

You are a member of the Settlement Class because Crate & Barrel’s records show that you may have scanned or otherwise used a finger, hand, or palm (or any portion thereof) or any other biometric identifier or information to enroll in or clock into or out of Crate & Barrel’s and/or CB2’s timekeeping system in the state of Illinois at any time from July 24, 2013, to March 12, 2024.

1. Do Nothing. To accept the Settlement, you do not have to do anything. You will receive a check via First Class U.S. Mail following Final Approval of the Settlement.

   If you would like to update the mailing address to which your check will be sent, you may do so at Submit an Address Update or by contacting the Settlement Administrator.

2. Exclude yourself. You may exclude yourself from the Settlement. If you do so, you will not receive any cash payment, and you will not release any claims you may have against Crate & Barrel and the other Released Parties and are free to pursue whatever legal rights you may have by filing your own lawsuit against any Released Party at your own risk and expense. To exclude yourself from the Settlement, you must mail a signed letter to the Settlement Administrator at Chatman v. Euromarket Designs, Inc. d/b/a Crate & Barrel, c/o Analytics Consulting LLC, PO Box 2002, Chanhassen, MN 55317-2002, postmarked by May 17, 2024. The exclusion letter must state that you exclude yourself from this Settlement and must include the name and case number of this litigation, as well as your full name, address, telephone number, a statement that you wish to be excluded, and signature. A request to be excluded that is sent to an address other than that designated in the Notice, or that is not postmarked within the time specified, shall be invalid, and the person serving such a request shall be considered a member of the Settlement Class, shall be bound as a Qualified Settlement Class Member, and shall release any Released Claims against any Released Party in accordance with the Settlement Agreement, if approved.

3. Object to the Settlement. If you wish to object to the Settlement, you must file a timely written statement of objection with the Court. The objection must be filed with the Court no later than May 17, 2024. You must also mail a copy of your objection to the attorneys for all Parties to the lawsuit, including Settlement Class Counsel (Stephan Zouras, LLC, 222 W. Adams St., Suite 2020, Chicago, Illinois 60606), as well as the attorneys representing Crate & Barrel (Latham & Watkins, LLP, 330 N. Wabash Ave., Suite 2800, Chicago, Illinois 60611) and the Settlement Administrator at Chatman v. Euromarket Designs, Inc. d/b/a Crate & Barrel, c/o Analytics Consulting LLC, PO Box 2002, Chanhassen, MN 55317-2002, postmarked no later than May 17, 2024. Any objection to the proposed Settlement must include your (a) full name, address, and current telephone number; (b) the case name and number of this lawsuit; (c) the date range during which you were employed by Crate & Barrel or any other Released Party; (d) all grounds for the objection, with factual and legal support for the stated objection, including any supporting materials; (e) the identification of any other objections you have filed, or has had filed on your behalf, in any other class action cases in the last five years; and (f) your signature. If you hire an attorney in connection with making an objection, you must also provide the name, address, and telephone number of your counsel with your objection. If you do hire your own attorney, you will be solely responsible for payment of any fees and expenses the attorney incurs on your behalf. If you exclude yourself from the Settlement, you cannot file an objection.

   You may appear at the Final Approval Hearing, which is to be held on July 9, 2024 at 1:30 p.m., via Zoom video conference using the following dial-in information: Meeting ID: 966 9558 2802 and Password: 160424 (Zoom Call-In Number: 312-626-6799) in person, or through counsel to show cause why the proposed Settlement should not be approved as fair, reasonable, and adequate. Attendance at the hearing is not necessary; however, persons wishing to be heard orally in opposition to the approval of the Settlement, the Fee Award, and/or the request for a Service Award to the Class Representative are required to indicate in their written objection their intention to appear at the hearing on their own behalf or through counsel and to identify the names of any witnesses they intend to call to testify at the Final Approval Hearing, as well as any exhibits they intend to introduce at the Final Approval Hearing, which must also be attached to, or included with, the written objection. Any Settlement Class Member who fails to timely file and serve a written objection and notice of intent to appear at the Final Approval Hearing pursuant to this Settlement Agreement shall not be permitted to object to the approval of the Settlement Agreement at the Final Approval Hearing and shall be foreclosed from seeking any review of the Settlement Agreement or its terms by appeal or other means.

Unless you timely and properly exclude yourself, you will be considered a member of the Settlement Class or a Qualified Settlement Class Member, which means you give up your right to file or continue a lawsuit against Crate & Barrel and the Released Parties relating to BIPA, biometric data, biometric information, biometric identifiers, and the claims brought in the Action. Giving up your legal claims is called a release. The precise terms of the release are in the Settlement Agreement, a copy of which you may request from Settlement Class Counsel, the attorneys identified below who have been appointed by the Court to represent the Settlement Class. Unless you formally exclude yourself from this Settlement, you will release your claims.

The Parties cannot predict exactly when (or whether) the Court will give Final Approval to the Settlement, so please be patient. However, if the Court approves the Settlement, checks will be mailed within 21 days after the Court’s approval order becomes final (Effective Date). If there is an appeal of the Settlement, payment may be delayed.

The Court has already given Preliminary Approval to the Settlement. A final hearing on the settlement, called a Final Approval Hearing, will be held on July 9, 2024 at 1:30 p.m., via Zoom video conference using the following dial-in information: Meeting ID: 966 9558 2802 and Password: 160424 (Zoom Call-In Number: 312-626-6799).The Court may reschedule the Final Approval Hearing at its discretion and without notifying Settlement Class Members. Please continue to check the Settlement Website for any updates or additional information.

If the Settlement is given Final Approval, the Settlement Agreement’s terms will take effect and the lawsuit will be dismissed on the merits with prejudice. Both sides have agreed to the Settlement in order to achieve an early and certain resolution to the lawsuit, in a manner that provides specific and valuable benefits to the members of the Settlement Class.

If the Court does not approve the Settlement, if it approves the Settlement and the approval is reversed on appeal, or if the Settlement does not become final for some other reason, you will not be paid at this time and Settlement Class Members will receive no benefits from the Settlement. In that instance, Plaintiff, Crate & Barrel, the Released Parties, and all of the Settlement Class Members will be in the same position as they were prior to the execution of the Settlement Agreement, the Settlement will have no legal effect, no class will remain certified (conditionally or otherwise), and the Plaintiff and Crate & Barrel will continue to litigate the lawsuit. If the Settlement is not approved, there can be no assurance that the Settlement Class will recover more than is provided in the Settlement Agreement, or indeed, anything at all.

The Court has approved the following Settlement Class Counsel to represent the Settlement Class. You will not be personally charged for these lawyers because they are being paid out of the Settlement Fund. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer instead, you may hire one at your own expense.

Ryan F. Stephan
James B. Zouras
Molly E. Stemper
Stephan Zouras, LLC
222 W. Adams St., Suite 2020
Chicago, IL 60606
312.233.1550 | 312.233.1560 fax
rstephan@stephanzouras.com
jzouras@stephanzouras.com
mstemper@stephanzouras.com

The Notice is only a summary of the proposed Settlement of this lawsuit. More details are in the Settlement Agreement that can be obtained, along with other documents, by visiting the Settlement Website below, contacting Settlement Class Counsel (contact information noted above), or contacting the Settlement Administrator (contact information noted below). All pleadings and documents filed in court may be reviewed or copied in the Office of the Clerk.

Please do not call the Judge, the Clerk of the Court, or Crate & Barrel’s attorneys about this case. They will not be able to give you advice on your options.

Settlement Administrator
Chatman v. Euromarket Designs, Inc.
d/b/a Crate & Barrel
c/o Analytics Consulting LLC
PO Box 2002
Chanhassen MN 55317-2002
Phone: (888) 890-6758
Email: EuromarketCrateandBarrelBIPASettlement@noticeadministrator.com