Frequently Asked Questions

The Court authorized this Notice because you have a right to know about a proposed settlement of this class action lawsuit and about all of your options before the Court decides whether to give final approval to the Settlement.  This Notice explains the lawsuit, the Settlement, and your legal rights.

The lawsuit that is the subject of this settlement is Duane Buck and Ann Buck, on Behalf of Themselves and All Others Similarly Situated, v. American General Life Insurance Company, Case No. 1:17-cv-13278.  Duane Buck and Ann Buck are the “Plaintiffs” in the lawsuit.  American General Life Insurance Company, including entities that merged into it, (“AGLIC”) is the “Defendant” in the lawsuit.

The issuance of this Notice does not reflect any opinion by the Court about the merits of any claim or defense in the lawsuit, and the Court still has to decide whether to approve the Settlement.  If the Court approves the Settlement and an Allocation Plan, payments to Damages Settlement Class Members will be made after any appeals have been resolved and after the completion of all claims processing.  Please be patient, as this process can take some time to complete.

AGLIC is a life insurance company that issues and administers various forms of life insurance, including Universal Life Insurance. Federal tax law imposes limits on the maximum premium payments that can be paid towards a Universal Life Insurance policy at a given time.

The Plaintiffs in the lawsuit allege that AGLIC breached its contracts with owners of Universal Life Insurance policies by issuing Illustrations and Annual Statements that did not properly reflect the effect of limits on the maximum premium contributions allowed by federal tax law. AGLIC denies the Plaintiffs’ allegations.

In a class action, one or more people called “class representatives” sue on behalf of themselves and other people with similar claims. All of these people together are the “class” or “class members.” One court resolves the issues for all class members in one lawsuit.

The Court has not decided in favor of the Plaintiffs or AGLIC. Instead, the Plaintiffs and AGLIC have agreed to settle the lawsuit on the terms stated in the Settlement Agreement. By agreeing to the Settlement, the Plaintiffs and AGLIC avoid the costs and uncertainty of a trial, and Settlement Class Members receive the benefits described in this Notice. The Settlement does not mean that any law was broken or that AGLIC did anything wrong. In fact, AGLIC denies the Plaintiffs’ allegations and that AGLIC has engaged any wrongdoing. The Plaintiffs and the Plaintiffs’ lawyers think that the proposed Settlement is best for the class members.

The Settlement establishes two Settlement Classes: a Damages Settlement Class and an Injunctive Settlement Class. To qualify as a member of either Settlement Class, or both Settlement Classes, you must meet certain criteria, described below. Those criteria refer to the names of various “administrative systems.” Please refer to Appendix A for instructions on determining the administrative system associated with your Policy.

a) Damages Settlement Class

The Damages Settlement Class consists of Policyholders that meet any of the criteria listed below.

Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria

b) Injunctive Settlement Class

In addition to the Damages Settlement Class, the parties have agreed to certify for settlement purposes an Injunctive Settlement Class. The Injunctive Settlement Class consists of Policyholders that meet the criteria listed below:

Criteria for Membership in the Injunctive Settlement Class

AGLIC has identified 20,795 Policyholders meeting the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria and has provided the list of those Policyholders (referred to as “Identified Damages Settlement Class Members”) to Class Counsel and the Settlement Administrator.

Identified Damages Settlement Class Members will receive notice of the proposed settlement by mail. If you are not sure whether you received a notice, you may email or call the Settlement Administrator at the address or number above.

The Damages Settlement Class also includes any Policyholder who meets the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria listed in section 5(a) of this Notice but who was not an Identified Damages Settlement Class Member. This means that if you meet the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria set forth in response to section 5(a) of this Notice, regardless of whether you received notice of the proposed settlement by mail, you are bound by the Settlement.

You are a member of the Injunctive Settlement Class if you meet the Criteria for Membership in the Injunctive Settlement Class listed in section 5(b) of this Notice.

Unless they timely and validly opt out, Identified Damages Settlement Class Members will receive money from the Settlement in accordance with the Allocation Plan, without needing to submit a Claim.

A Policyholder that meets the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria listed in section 5(a) of this Notice, but that was not identified by AGLIC as an Identified Damages Settlement Class Member, can submit a Claim in accordance with the procedures set forth in this Notice. If the Claim is approved by the Settlement Administrator, the Policyholder will receive money from the Settlement in accordance with the Allocation Plan. A Policyholder that is not an Identified Damages Settlement Class Member but meets the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria is a member of the Damages Settlement Class and is bound by all of the terms of the Settlement, even if the Policyholder does not timely submit a Claim, unless that Policyholder asks to be excluded (see below). A Policyholder that is not an Identified Damages Settlement Class Member but meets the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria and does not timely submit a Claim will not receive money from the Settlement.

Damages Settlement Class Members that have not timely and validly asked to be excluded from the Settlement, and all Injunctive Settlement Class Members, are bound by all the terms of the Settlement Agreement, including the terms relating to Released Claims, as set forth in the Settlement Agreement. This means that if you are a Damages Settlement Class Member and have not opted out of the Settlement, or if you are an Injunctive Settlement Class Member, you will no longer have a right to sue AGLIC for any Released Claims. You will also be bound by any court decisions relating to the lawsuit that is the subject of this Settlement, and the Settlement. If the Settlement is approved by the Court, you will be releasing AGLIC as described more fully in the Settlement Agreement.

If you are an Identified Damages Settlement Class Member, you do not need to do anything to receive money under the Settlement. If you are not an Identified Damages Settlement Class Member but you believe you meet the Identified Damages Settlement Class Member Criteria, you can only receive money under the Settlement if you timely complete and return a Proof of Claim with adequate supporting documentation, which is then approved by the Settlement Administrator. To be timely, a Proof of Claim must be received by the Settlement Administrator no later than August 28, 2023. The Proof of Claim is available at www.AGLICClassAction.com. You may also request that a Proof of Claim be mailed to you by emailing or calling the Settlement Administrator at the address or number above.

AGLIC has agreed to pay $4.65 million into a settlement fund. Notice and Administration Costs (estimated at $100,000), Litigation Expenses awarded by the Court (see below), attorneys’ fees awarded by the Court (see below), any Incentive Awards approved by the Court (not to exceed $25,000), and any other costs or fees approved by the Court, will be deducted from the Settlement Fund, with the remainder constituting the “Net Settlement Fund.”

As relief to the Injunctive Settlement Class, AGLIC will place the following disclosure language on all Annual Statements for Policies administered on the ULA, LifeComm86, LifeComm90, ALS, and ALIP administrative systems:

“This Annual Statement does not account for premium contribution limits imposed by applicable law, which may prevent you from paying planned premiums through the listed termination dates.”

At this time, it is not possible to determine how much money any Damages Settlement Class Member will receive from the Settlement. The Settlement Amount will be deposited into a Settlement Fund. If the Court approves the Settlement, and if the Effective Date occurs, the Net Settlement Fund will be distributed in accordance with the Allocation Plan.

The Net Settlement Fund will not be distributed unless and until the Court has approved the Settlement and Allocation Plan, and the time for any appeal has expired.

Postlethwaite & Netterville, APAC
AGLIC Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 4725
Baton Rouge, LA 70821
Email: info@AGLICClassAction.com
Toll-free number: 1-877-540-4332

The Court appointed the following attorneys and their respective law firms as “Class Counsel.”

The Court will decide how much Class Counsel will be paid. Class Counsel, in compensation for their time and risk in prosecuting this lawsuit on a wholly contingent fee basis, intend to apply to the Court for an award of attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of the litigation expenses they incurred in prosecuting the lawsuit (the “Fee Petition”). AGLIC has agreed not to contest the Fee Petition, provided that Class Counsel does not request more than 33 ⅓ % of the Settlement Amount, and not to contest Class Counsel’s request for approval of reimbursement of the costs and expenses they incurred in prosecuting the lawsuit provided that such costs and expenses do not exceed $100,000 (not including the costs and fees of the Settlement Administrator).

Class Counsel will file their Fee Petition on or before September 19, 2023. Any award of attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of the litigation expenses Class Counsel incurred in prosecuting the lawsuit will be only as approved by the Court in amounts it determines to be fair and reasonable. If you are a Settlement Class Member and you wish to object to the Fee Petition, you may file with the Court an objection to the Fee Petition in writing. In order for the Court to consider your objection, your objection must be sent according to the instructions provided below.

To exclude yourself from the Settlement, you must send a letter that says you want to be excluded from the lawsuit Duane Buck and Ann Buck, on Behalf of Themselves and All Others Similarly Situated, v. American General Life Insurance Company, Case No. 1:17-cv-13278. Your letter must include your name, address, telephone number, and signature. You must send your request for exclusion by first-class mail postmarked by August 28, 2023, or pre-paid delivery service to be hand-delivered to:

AGLIC Settlement Administrator
PO Box 4725
Baton Rouge, LA 70821

no later than August 28, 2023. A request for exclusion shall not be valid and effective unless it provides all the information called for, and is timely made in accordance with, this section 14, or is otherwise accepted by the Court.

You cannot ask to be excluded by phone or by email.

No. If you are a Damages Settlement Class Member and you do not timely exclude yourself from the Settlement in accordance with the terms of the Settlement, you give up the right to sue AGLIC for the Released Claims.

No. If you are an Injunctive Settlement Class Member, you cannot exclude yourself from the Settlement and you will receive the non-monetary relief that the Settlement provides to Injunctive Settlement Class Members. However, if you dislike or disagree with any aspect of the Settlement, you can still object to the Settlement in accordance with the procedures described below.

Objecting is simply telling the Court that you do not like the Settlement or something about it. Asking to be excluded from the Settlement is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Settlement Class.

The Court will hold a “Fairness / Final Approval Hearing” at 10 a.m. on September 29, 2023 at the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, Mitchell H. Cohen Building & U.S. Courthouse, 4th & Cooper Streets, Camden, New Jersey 08101. Please note that the Court may choose to change the date and/or time of the Fairness / Final Approval Hearing without further notice of any kind. Settlement Class Members are advised to check www.AGLICClassAction.com for any updates.

The purpose of the Fairness / Final Approval Hearing is to determine whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate and whether the Court should enter judgment granting final approval of the Settlement. If there are objections to the Settlement or any part of it, the Court will consider them and will listen to people who have asked to speak at the hearing and the Court has elected to hear from. The Court will also consider Class Counsel’s request, or requests, for reimbursement of expenses incurred in this case. After the hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement.

No. Class Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. However, you or your own lawyer may attend the hearing if you wish, at your own expense. You may object in person and/or through an attorney. If you send an objection, you do not have to come to Court to discuss it. As long as you mailed your objection on time, and included the information required, the Court will consider it.

You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Fairness / Final Approval Hearing. To do so, you must include that in your objection as described above.