What I meant by cents on the dollar is usually, they broke rules, make $100 billion from it (imaginary scenario), and then the settlement from that wrong doing sees them pay out $2 billion to the affected customers that joined the class. It may be due to the fact that I’ve not paid attention to too many class action suits, but it seems like the settlement never comes close to the harm they caused.
I can tell you that I have arbitration on going, and it’s been well over a year that it has been happening. To assume that the arbitration wraps up in a month, when you’ve got lawyers involved is non-sense. I don’t believe arbitrators are in anyone’s pocket either. The arbitrators aren’t in-house council for Valve, they are a company Valve has contracted with, and they’re going to be neutral, and rule based on law, not who’s paying. As a lot of arbitration rules state that if you take the case to arbitration and lose, the one that is ruled against pays for the cost of the arbitration. Based on the “mate’s rates”, I’m guessing you’re UK based. I don’t know that legal system, so can’t say how fee structures work. But a great deal of lawyers that are suing on behalf of you, in the US, take a percentage of the settlement. So the biggest cost is all to the person being sued, as they do pay the lawyers by the hour instead of a cut of the ruling.
I don’t think Valve is changing their rules to screw customers, I think they’re doing it because they’ve found separating each case into a different arbitration claim is too expensive. And it would have been better for them all to be in one group. I believe Valve is the best game distributor, as it turns out. But if people with law degrees think they’ve broken rules, I’m all for punishing rule-breaking. In this particular scenario, it seems like it might slightly improve things for consumers, and greatly benefit small studios.
If you push everybody into a class action, it will be cheaper. Have you ever gotten more than a cent on the dollar from a class action settlement(unless you’re the class representative)? Sure the seem like the settlements are a lot of money, but if you can get the class action settled with very few claimants, no one will be able to sue over that particular issue again, so it puts it behind the company. Instead of being dogged by individuals for however long.
I am curious what region you’re from. I would guess it’s outside of the US, but perhaps there’s an area that differs from the norm I’ve experienced.
If you are indeed outside the US, I’m guessing it’s the American tradition of engagement rings, without the tradition of continuing to wear the engagement rings. That truly would be a (bigger) waste of money.
Wait, do you know women that stop wearing their engagement ring after they’re married? Every married woman I’ve met (that doesn’t have a hands based labor job) wears the engagement and wedding ring. All the women in my family have them soldered together some time after, so they don’t independently spin on the finger.
Spiderman 2 and Mario Bros Wonder.
Mainly Spiderman, but play the other when my daughter is playing her SM2 game.
It is a bit demoralizing, as a human, to see leaders in the free world doing this. I don’t think I know of a time the Ukrainians have been ungrateful. I know they’ve been impatient, but that happens when you see children dying from the army that’s invading. NATO weapons are finally being used in the purpose they were manufactured for, defeating the Russian army.
Send the clerks to make sure the weapons aren’t being diverted, and let them fight for their lives.
I will be sure to get off your lawn. 👍
My man!
Early on Russia said it would treat any foreigner fighting for Ukraine as a mercenary, and criminally punish them. Doesn’t matter that they sign with the Ukrainian government to fully be in the Ukrainian military. Just more rank hypocrisy, as they pull soldiers from all over Africa, India and China. Along with Americans caught in statutory rape charges that happened to flee before trial.