This page provides the answers to class members’ most frequently asked questions.
The information provided is in summary form and is not intended as a complete explanation of your rights. For full and complete information, you are directed to review carefully the Notice.
In the Action, Plaintiffs claim that, during the Class Period, Defendants violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”), as amended, 29 U. S. C. §1001, et seq., with respect to its management of the Plan’s investments, including failing to diligently screen the majority of Plan options (including the Northern Trust proprietary funds); monitoring of the Plan’s investment and administrative fees to defray the Plan costs; and engaging in certain prohibited transactions.
A more complete description of what Plaintiffs allege is in the Amended Complaint, which is available on Important Case Documents.
Defendants have denied and continue to deny the claims and contentions of Plaintiffs, that they are liable at all to the Class, and that the Class or the Plan have suffered any harm or damage for which Defendants could or should be held responsible. Defendants contend that they acted prudently and in keeping with their fiduciary responsibilities under ERISA, and in the best interests of the Plan’s participants.
The Court has not reached a final decision as to Plaintiffs’ claims. Instead, Plaintiffs and Defendants have agreed to a Settlement. The Settlement is the product of extensive negotiations between Class Counsel and Defendants’ counsel. The Parties to the Settlement have considered the uncertainty and risks of litigation and have concluded that it is desirable to settle on the terms and conditions set forth in the Settlement Agreement. Plaintiffs and Class Counsel, who are highly experienced in this kind of matter, believe that the Settlement is best for all Class Members.
If you participated in The Northern Trust Thrift Incentive Plan (the “Plan”) and invested in The Northern Trust Focus Funds at any time on or after June 1, 2015, through January 28, 2025, you are part of the settlement.
Defendants have agreed to pay $6,900,000 into a Qualified Settlement Fund to resolve the claims of Class Members. The Net Settlement Amount (after deduction of any Court-approved expenses associated with administering the Settlement, Attorneys’ Fees and Costs, and Service Awards to Plaintiffs) will be allocated to Class Members according to the Plan of Allocation set forth in the Settlement Agreement. Under the Plan of Allocation, monies will be distributed to Current and Former Participants pro rata based on their Average Qualifying Account Balance for the period June 1, 2015 to September 22, 2021.
All Class Members and anyone claiming through them will fully release the Plan as well as Defendants and the Released Parties from Plaintiffs’ Released Claims. The Released Parties include, but are not limited to, Defendants’ past, present, and future parent corporation(s), subsidiaries, divisions, joint ventures, predecessors, successors, successors-in-interest, and assigns, and any individual, partnership, corporation, or any other form of entity or organization that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with any of the foregoing. The Plaintiffs’ Released Claims include, but are not limited to, all claims that were asserted in the Action or could have been asserted in the Action based on any of the allegations, acts, omissions, purported conflicts, representations, misrepresentations, facts, events, matters, transactions, or occurrences asserted in the Action, whether or not pleaded in the Complaints. The full definitions of Released Parties and Released.
This is only a summary of the Released Parties and Plaintiffs’ Released Claims and is not a binding description of either. The governing releases are found within the Settlement Agreement on Important Case Documents.
Generally, the release means that Class Members will not have the right to sue the Plan, Defendants, or related parties for conduct during the Class Period arising out of or relating to the allegations in the lawsuit
Class Members are not required to do anything to receive a settlement payment.
Class Members who have Plan accounts during the Class Period with a balance greater than $0 as of January 28, 2025 (“Current Participants”) will receive their payment directly into their individual accounts. Class Members who are entitled to a distribution but who no longer had a Plan account with a balance greater than $0 as of January 28, 2025 (“Former Participants”) will receive their allocation in the form of a check mailed to their last known address or a rollover, if elected. To submit a rollover request online, go to Elect Rollover.
Payments will only be issued if the Court grants final approval of the Settlement.
The amount, if any, that will be allocated to you will be based upon records maintained by the Plan’s recordkeeper(s). Calculations regarding the individual distributions will be performed by the Settlement Administrator, whose determinations will be final and binding, pursuant to the Court-approved Plan of Allocation.
The Plan of Allocation will allocate the Net Settlement Fund as follows:
There are approximately 14,000 Class Members.
The timing of the distribution of the Net Settlement Amount depends on several matters, including the Court’s final approval of the Settlement and that approval becoming final and no longer subject to any appeals in any court. An appeal of the final approval may take several years. If the Settlement is approved by the Court, and there are no appeals, the Settlement distribution likely will occur in October-November 2025.
There Will Be No Payments Under The Settlement If The Settlement Agreement Is Terminated.
No. The Class was certified under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(1). Therefore, as a Class Member, you are bound by any judgments or orders that are entered in the Action for all claims that were asserted in the Action or are otherwise included as Plaintiffs’ Released Claims under the Settlement.
If you are a Class Member, you can tell the Court that you do not agree with the Settlement or some part of it. You may also object to Class Counsel’s petition for Attorneys’ Fees and Costs and Service Awards. To object, you must send the Court a written statement that you object to the Settlement in Conlon v. The Northern Trust Co., Case No. 21-cv-2940 (N.D. Ill.), specifying the reason(s), if any, for each such objection made, including any legal support or evidence that you wish to bring to the Court’s attention or introduce in support of such objection. Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, signature, and proof of membership in the Settlement Class. Your written objection must be received by the Court no later than July 1, 2025. The Court’s address is United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, 219 South Dearborn Street, Courtroom 1700, Chicago, IL 60604. Your written objection also must be mailed to the lawyers listed in your Notice, no later than July 1, 2025.
The Court will hold a Fairness Hearing at 10:00 a.m. CST on July 29, 2025, at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, 219 South Dearborn Street, Courtroom 1700, Chicago, IL 60604.
At the Fairness Hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate. If there are objections, the Court will consider them. After the Fairness Hearing, the Court will decide whether to give its final approval to the Settlement. The Court also will consider the petition for Class Counsel’s Attorneys’ Fees and Costs and Service Awards for Plaintiffs.