CLASS ACTION AGAINST THE FEDERATION
1. Why was the Notice issued?
The Independent authority of Dogs for an Independant People - “DFIP” authorized the Notice because you have a right to know about the proposed Settlement of this class action lawsuit and about all of your options, before it decides whether to approve the Settlement. The Notice explains the lawsuit, the Settlement, your legal rights, what benefits are available, and who may qualify for them. A copy of the Notice and the edict passed down by his Right Honourable Chief Magistrate Sir Jimbob the Third of the Independent Authority of Dogs for An Independant People - “DFIP” can be viewed by the general populace and will be made available in the coming weeks.
Judge Bekum Mimstas of the DFIP Court for the Central District of Timbalderis is overseeing this class action and the Settlement. The case is known as Dogdoor and Dogdog et al. v. The Federation, Case No. DFIP.AST.664(VBKxx). The people who sued are called the Plaintiffs and the company they sued, The Federation., is called the Defendant.
2. Why did I receive the Notice?
You received the Notice because the records indicate that you may have been interdicted by a Federation vessel whilst piloting a vessel that you own — said vessel being sold under one of the following brands:
- Faulcon Delacy Sidewinder Mk. I
- Faulcon Delacy Viper Mk. III
- Faulcon Delacy Cobra Mk. III
- Faulcon Delacy Python
- Faulcon Delacy Anaconda
- Core Dynamics Eagle Mk. II
- Zorgon Peterson Hauler
- Zorgon Peterson Adder
- Lakon Type 6 Transporter
- Lakon Type 7
- Lakon Type 9 Heavy
- Lakon Asp Explorer
- Gutamaya Imperial Clipper
- Saud Kruger Orca
The above listed vessels are referred to as the "Vessels" throughout this Notice.
Specific Caveats:
If you were piloting a loaned Sidewinder at the time of interdiction, this action does not apply to you. If you are piloting a Federal Dropship, this action does not apply to you as your affiliation with the Federation and it’s rule negates your claim.
3. What is the lawsuit about?
The lawsuit claims that the vessels, owners and pilots subject to unwarranted interdiction by the Federation have been subject to some or all of the following due to the violent nature of interdiction from Hyperspace:
- Hull Damage
- Parts Damage
- Complete Vessel Destruction
- Emotional and Psychological distress causing unbridled anger and hatred for the Federation
- Contain resultant defects that can cause them to catch on fire due to a buildup of lint that is displaced inside them as a result of the trauma and internal discombobulation resulting from interdiction.
- The lawsuit further claims that the Federation breached warranties, was negligent, violated various state consumer protection statutes and unlawfully profited from the negligence of their officers.
The Federation denies these claims and states that there is only negligible damage as a result of lawful interdiction and that these actions provide for the reasonable rule of law. The Federation also denies that it violated any law or engaged in any wrongdoing.
The Settlement includes, and requires you to release any claims you may have against the Federation for personal injury or property damage as a result of the interdiction
4. Why is this a class action?
In a class action, one or more people called "Class Representatives" (in this case, Dogdoor and Dogdog) sue for all people who have similar claims. Together, these people are called a "Settlement Class" or "Class Members." One court resolves the legal issues for all Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the Settlement Class.
5. Why is there a Settlement?
The Court has not decided whether so called "unlawful interdiction" is lawful, causes trauma, vessel damage or is dangerous. Instead, we hope both sides will agree to a Settlement to avoid the costs and risks of further litigation and provide benefits to Class Members. The Settlement does not mean that a Court found that the Federation broke any laws or did anything wrong. The Class Representatives and the lawyers representing them (called "Class Counsel") believe that the Settlement is in the best interests of all Class Members.
6. Who is included in the Settlement?
The Settlement Class includes all persons in Federation controlled space and all systems there within, whom have received any damages listed above as the result of an unprovoked and unlawful interdiction committed by Federation Authorities.
7. How do I know if I am a Class Member?
To determine if you are a Class Member, you need to verify whether you have been unlawfully interdicted by a member of the Federation while said member was on duty. You can do this by reviewing your vessels logs, blackbox, or any third party data you have available. A class member is required to provide evidence that an unlawful interdiction was committed on their vessel by Federation Authorities.
8. Who isn't included in the Settlement Class?
The following are not included in the Settlement Class: (1) officers, directors, and employees of The Federation and its parents and subsidiaries; (2) persons lawfully interdicted due to wanted status; (3) subrogees (someone who has assumed the rights of another person) or all entities claim to be subrogated to the rights of a pilot; and (4) officers, directors, and employees of Achilles Aerospace, manufacturer of the FSD Interdictor.
9. What benefits does the Settlement provide?
The Settlement aims to provide all Class Members with reparations owed for damages against vessels and pilots unlawfully interdicted by Federation pilots. Furthermore, DFIP and Class Members aim to initiate legislation to put restrictions upon the Federations use of interdictions, limited to those with criminal status’ with the Federation and local systems within Federation space.
Actions Sought
- Successful Class action and reimbursements (Section 9) - Phase 1. (current proceedings)
- Escalation of claim to a Federal High Court Challenge requiring law be passed to make unlawful the interdiction of any vessel without reasonable cause - This is Phase 2
- Failing items 1 and 2 (above), Declaration of War against the Federation by the Independent Authority of Dogs for an Independant People - “DFIP”. And your allegiance to this cause. This is Phase 3
Summary
Few restrictions limit the type of ‘causes of action’ that can be brought as class claims.Class members are referred to as group members.Representative Group Proceedings Act actions must satisfy three threshold requirements:1. Seven or more persons must claim against the same defendant;2. Claims must arise from related circumstances; and3. There must be a substantial common issue of law or fact.Class Action lawsuits offer a number of advantages as they aggregate large numbers of individualised claims into one representational lawsuit.• Aggregation can substantially increase the efficiency of the legal process and lower the costs of the litigation.• In cases with common questions of law and fact, the aggregation of claims into a Class Action may avoid the necessity of repeating days of the same witnesses, exhibits and issues from multiple individual trials. Class Actions may overcome the problem, as small recoveries do not provide the incentive for any individual to bring a solo action prosecuting his or her rights. Whereas Class Actions solve this problem by aggregating the relatively paltry potential recoveries into something worthwhile.In other words, a class action ensures that a defendant who engages in widespread harm -- but does so minimally against each individual plaintiff -- must compensate those individuals for their injuries.Thousands of shareholders / customers of a public company may have losses too small to justify separate lawsuits, but a Class Action can be brought efficiently on behalf of all shareholders or customers.Perhaps even more important than compensation, is that class treatment of claims may be the only way to impose the costs of wrongdoing on the wrongdoer, thus deterring future wrongdoing.In limited fund cases, a Class Action ensures that all plaintiffs receive relief and that early-filing plaintiffs do not raid the fund (i.e., the defendant) of all its assets before other plaintiffs may be compensated.A Class Action in such a situation collates all claims into one venue where a court can equitably divide the assets amongst all the plaintiffs if they win the case.
