Who is a Class Member
The Los Angeles County Telephone Tax Refund class action lawsuit settlement includes “all persons, including corporate and non-corporate entities wherever organized and existing, who paid telephone utility user taxes to the County of Los Angeles on telephone service utilized from August 25, 2005 to November 4, 2008, other than local-only telephone services, teletypewriter exchange service, or long distance telephone service where the charge varied by both time and distance, and who have not already received a refund of such tax.”
If you don’t qualify for this settlement, check out our database of other class action settlements you may be eligible for.
Settlement Amount
- $16,900,000.00
Estimated Award
- Up to 100% Refund
Settlement Class members who file a valid and timely claim and do not have supporting documentation can receive these amounts.
- $46.00 – Mobile Telephone Service
- $27.50 – Residential Landline Service
- $46.00 – Business Landline Service
If you have supporting documentation outlined in FAQ 5 you can claim the actual amount of TUT you paid, up to 100%.
Proof of Purchase
- To receive a standard payment, you do not need to submit any supporting documentation. To claim a refund based on the actual TUT that you paid for telephone services between August 25, 2005 and November 4, 2008, you can view what supporting documentation you need to submit in FAQ 5.
Claim Form
Los Angeles County Telephone Tax Refund Settlement Notes
- Granados v. County of Los Angeles
- Case No. BC361470
- Pending in the Superior Court of the State of California, County of Los Angeles
Plaintiff Willy Granados filed this class action lawsuit alleging that Los Angeles County improperly required telephone service providers to collect “Telephone User Tax” or TUT on telephone services that were not legally taxable. Specifically, Granados alleges that prior to November 4, 2008, LA County’s TUT should have been collected only on local telephone service and long distance service where charges for calls varied by both time and distance.
Granados sought refunds of telephone utility users taxes (UUT) collected by the County of Los Angeles and after more than a decade of litigation, the two parties reached a settlement. LA County denies all the claims but has agreed to payout $16.9 million to resolve the case. Complete details about the case and settlement are provided on the LA County Telephone Tax Refund settlement website.
Class members who wish to object to the LA County Telephone Tax Refund settlement must do so by September 28, 2018. Those who wish to exclude themselves from the settlement must do so by October 15, 2018. Class members who wish to participate in the settlement must submit a claim form on or before September 15, 2018.
Important Dates
- 9/15/18: Claim Form Deadline for Out of Pocket Losses & Credit Monitoring
- 9/28/18: Objection Deadline
- 10/15/18: Exclusion Deadline
- 10/29/18: Final Hearing at 9:00 am PT* (class members do not need to attend this hearing in order to receive a slice of the settlement pie).
*Settlement Class Members who wish to speak at the hearing should check www.LACountyTaxRefund.com to confirm that the date or time of the Hearing has not been changed.
Contact Information
- Mail: Granados v. County of Los Angeles, c/o JND Legal Administration, P.O. Box 91348, Seattle, WA 98111
- Phone: 1-833-807-3690
- Email: info@LACountyTaxRefund.com
Class Counsel
- Daniel Krasner, Rachele R. Rickert, and Marisa C. Livesay of Wolf Haldenstein Alder Freeman & Herz LLP
- Jonathan W. Cuneo of Cuneo Gilbert & LaDuca LLP
- Nicholas E Chimicles and Timothy N. Matthews of Chimicles & Tikellis LLP
- Jon Tostrud of Tostrud Law Group PC
Settlement Website
Because my mail was delivered to the wrong address, I did not receive this information in time to file a claim by the September 15, 2018 deadline date. This is probably true of many other residents who were not notified and uninformed. Unless these notices have a signed receipt where you can make an informed decision no one should be excluded beyond the deadline date.
This date should be extend and participates should be given additional time to pursue this matter.