Recently, Ticketmaster has agreed to settle a class action lawsuit that has been filed against it which addresses Ticketmaster's shipping fees and processing charges. You can read the complaint here. Generally speaking, the settlement will mean that Ticketmaster customers who purchased tickets through Ticketmaster will be able to redeem $1.50 from Ticketmaster for each purchase made from October 21, 1999 to October 19, 2011.

Because many of you music fans probably have used Ticketmaster during this time period, I'll roughly outline the case, explain the concept of a class action, and then conclude by explaining how those of you in the class still have options.

WHAT IS THE LAWSUIT?

The suit speaks for people who have been injured by Ticketmaster's practices as a base for claims. The suit was brought in California state court.

The first representative for the class was Curt Schlesinger. Schlesinger bought four Wilco tickets and paid $19.50 for UPS shipping with delivery due by 10:30am within 2 business days. (Honestly, if I had to swear in court and for all the nation to see that I went to see Wilco, I might just let Ticketmaster get away with the fraud…)

However, while Ticketmaster charged $19.50, they paid substantially less for shipping, factoring in for their discounted rates with the company. Non-discounted UPS shipping for those tickets would have only cost $16.35. Despite this, UPS did not state that they were charging more for the shipping on their site then they would actually have to pay to ship the tickets. That is, Ticketmaster did not post something like "We make profit off our shipping prices. These prices are not what we will pay to UPS."

The second representative for the class was Peter LoRe. LoRe purchased Bruce Springsteen tickets from Ticketmaster and paid an "Order Processing Charge" of $3.55. He also paid for UPS shipping in a scenario similar to Schlesinger, above. In regard to the "Order Processing Charge", the Class alleges that the processing fee didn't actually go towards any expense, and was just a markup for Ticketmaster. Ticketmaster did not say on their site that the "Order Processing Charge" was a markup without any associate expense. That is, Ticketmaster did not post something like "We make profit off our Order Processing Charge and the charge is not related to any expense."

Because Ticketmaster charged the members of the class for things which provided no benefit to the purchaser, but may have seemed that way, and did not state that the charges were Profit Generators, the class alleges a series of claims against Ticketmaster. The Claims are essentially for unfair business practices, false advertising, and unconscionable contract terms.

The Court has granted Class status to the group, meaning even those that are not directly involved int he litigation may benefit.

This suit is opening settlement, which if approved by the Court, as it likely will be, will mean the issues alleged above WILL NOT be decided the Court. That is, if this case settles, there will be NO ruling as to whether Ticketmaster's practices are/were actually deceptive.

WHAT IS A CLASS ACTION?

A Class Action is a type of lawsuit where a representative will bring a lawsuit on behalf of many potential Plaintiffs. There are several advantages and disadvantages to Class Actions. However, some of their most notable features are that they enable a entity being sued to handle many similar claims at once, to avoid wasting its own, and the Court's resources.

Additionally, and probably most relevant here, is that Class Actions allow a group of people to sue a company for small infractions that a single person would not be pursue. That is, no one is going to go to Court for $1.50. Therefore, without the existence of a Class Action, a company could hypothetically purposefully overcharge everyone by a dollar fifty because "Hey, no one's going to see us for a buck fifty!" The Class Action, therefore allows private parties to stop companies from cutting corners, as it were.

Often, people are disappointed with what their share of a settlement is. (I recently just got an award from an eBay class action for literally one penny.) But, remember, the purpose of a class action isn't necessarily to get the injured parties big bucks (but it can be, such as with asbestos litigation.) Rather, often, the purpose of a class action is to get a company from acting wrongfully.

Class Action rules vary between Federal and state Court. This is a state court action filed in California, which has one of the most unique requirements for class actions, and actually has four different types of Class Actions. However, without getting into too much legalese, in order to form a class for a class action, the injury must be shared equally among all members, the members of the Class Action must be identifiable by some attribute, and the there must be enough members of the class to warrant a class action.

Here, the court has decided that the injured parties are numerous enough, that they share the injury of having paid for Ticketmaster fees without knowing the fees had no associated expenses, and can be identified by having purchased tickets from October 21st, 1999 to October 19,th 2011.

OPTIONS FOR THOSE IN THE CLASS ACTION

The attorneys representing the class have come to a settlement agreement with Ticketmaster. Basically, if you purchased a ticket through Ticketmaster during the relevant time period, you are entitled to a $1,50 discount for future purposes at Ticketmaster, for each purchase, up to a total of 17 purchases. If you used the the UPS shipping option, you would be entitled to a $5.00 credit per ticket.

This settlement will only become effective of the court approves it. The hearing is currently scheduled for May 2012.

In this type of California class action, those in the class have an option. Firstly, if are in the class, you can object to the settlement by filing an objection with the Court. In which case, the Court will review your objection to see if it has merit. (Unless you have a really good argument… good luck, bro.)

Secondly, you can decide to opt out of the class, meaning that you would not take part in the settlement refund, and would still be able to pursue your own personal claim against Ticketmaster.

Third, if you do nothing, then you are eligible to reap the benefits of the class action settlement award. More info can be found at the class action site for this case: http://www.ticketfeelitigation.com/index.

Because more and more hidden fees seemed to be tacked onto entertainment goods and services, I'd expect more of these types of suits to appear, particularly with downloading and source funding type services. If anything, the thing to take from this suit is to watch those fees closely… and to not buy Wilco tickets.

John Gentile is an attorney licensed in California, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. In his spare time he enjoys pogo-ing, upping the punx, and smirking to himself as he walks into the courthouse knowing that he's the only guy there that can name on command four or more Flux of Pink Indians records.

THIS POST DOES NOT CONSTITUTE LEGAL ADVICE OR OPINION. THIS POST DOES NOT CREATE AN ATTORNEY CLIENT RELATIONSHIP. THIS POST IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND IS NOT GUARANTEED TO BE ACCURATE.