Frequently Asked Questions
- Why is there a Notice?
- What is this litigation about?
- What is the FTSA?
- Why is this a class action?
- Why is there a settlement?
- Who is included in the Settlement?
- What if I am not sure whether I am included in the Settlement?
- What does the Settlement provide?
- How do I file a Claim?
- When will I receive my check?
- How do I exclude myself from the Settlement?
- If I do not exclude myself, can I sue Aspen Dental for the same thing later?
- What am I giving up to stay in the Settlement Class?
- If I exclude myself, can I still get a payment?
- Do I have a lawyer in the case?
- How will the lawyers be paid?
- How do I tell the Court I do not like the Settlement?
- What is the difference between objecting and asking to be excluded?
- When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the Settlement?
- Do I have to attend the hearing?
- May I speak at the hearing?
- What happens if I do nothing at all?
- How do I get more information?
- Why is there a Notice?
A court authorized this Notice because you have a right to know about a proposed Settlement of a class action lawsuit known as Elfstrom v. Aspen Dental Management, Inc., in the Circuit Court of the Twentieth Judicial Circuit in and for Lee County, 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.
A Judge of the Twentieth Judicial Circuit in and for Lee County, Florida is overseeing this case. The person who sued, Ellen Elfstrom, is called the “Plaintiff.” Aspen Dental Management, Inc. is called the “Defendant” or “ADMI".
Top - What is this litigation about?
The lawsuit alleges that ADMI sent text messages to Plaintiff’s wireless telephone number without prior express written consent in violation of the Florida Telephone Solicitation Act, Fla. Stat. § 501.059, and seeks actual and statutory damages under the FTSA on behalf of the named Plaintiff and a class of all individuals in Florida.
ADMI denies each and every allegation of wrongdoing, liability, and damages that were or could have been asserted in the litigation and that the claims in the litigation would be appropriate for class treatment if the litigation were to proceed through trial.
The Plaintiff’s Complaint, Settlement Agreement, and other case-related documents are posted on the on the Case Documents section of this website. The Settlement resolves the lawsuit. The Court has not decided who is right.
Top - What is the FTSA?
The Florida Telephone Solicitation Act (commonly referred to as the “FTSA”) is a Florida law that restricts telephone solicitations and the use of automated telephone equipment without prior express consent.
Top - Why is this a class action?
In a class action, one person called the “Class Representative” (in this case, Plaintiff) sues on behalf of themselves and other people with similar claims.
All of the people who have claims similar to the Plaintiff are Settlement Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the class, among others.
Top - Why is there a settlement?
The Court has not found in favor of either Plaintiff or ADMI. Instead, both sides have agreed to a settlement. By agreeing to the Settlement, the parties avoid the costs and uncertainty of a trial, and if the Settlement is approved by the Court, Settlement Class Claimants will receive the benefits described in this Notice. ADMI denies all legal claims in this case. Plaintiff and his lawyers think the proposed Settlement is best for everyone who is affected.
Top - Who is included in the Settlement?
The Settlement includes all persons who received a text message on their cell phone from Aspen Dental. Specifically, the Settlement Class is defined as:
All persons in Florida or with a telephone number that has a Florida area code who received a text message from or on behalf of ADMI from July 1, 2021 to February 20, 2024.
Persons meeting this definition are referred to collectively as the “Settlement Class” and, individually, as “Settlement Class Members".
The Settlement Class excludes the following: (1) the trial judge presiding over this case; (2) Defendants, as well as any parent, subsidiary, affiliate of Defendants, and the officers, directors, agents, servants, or employees of Defendants; (3) any of the Released Parties; (4) the immediate family of any such person(s); (5) any Settlement Class Member who has timely opted out of this proceeding; and (6) Plaintiff’s Counsel, their employees, and their immediate family.
Top - What if I am not sure whether I am included in the Settlement?
If you are not sure whether you are in the Settlement Class or have any other questions about the Settlement, call the toll-free number, 1-877-392-0259. You also may send questions to the Settlement Administrator at Elfstrom v. ADMI Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 301132, Los Angeles, CA 90030-1133.
Top - What does the Settlement provide?
To fully settle and release claims of the Settlement Class Members, ADMI has agreed to make payments to the Settlement Class Members and pay for notice and administration costs of the Settlement, attorneys’ fees and expenses incurred by counsel for the Settlement Class, and Service Award for Plaintiff (the “Settlement Fund”). Each Settlement Class Member who submits a timely, valid, correct and verified Claim Form by the Claim Deadline in the manner required by this Agreement, making all the required affirmations and representations, shall be sent a Claim Settlement Check by the Administrator in the amount of $87.45.
Class Claimants will be sent their Claim Settlement Payments to the address they submitted on their Claim Form within 60 days following the Effective Date.
Top - How do I file a Claim?
If you qualify for a payment, you must complete and submit a valid Claim Form. You may download a Claim Form from this website, or request a Claim Form by calling the Settlement Administrator at the toll-free number below. To be valid, a Claim Form must be completed fully and accurately and submitted timely.
You must submit a Claim Form by U.S. mail or through the Settlement Website, and it must be postmarked by March 31, 2024.
Please read the Claim Form carefully and provide all the information required. Only one Claim Form may be submitted per Settlement Class Member.
Top - When will I receive my check?
Payments in the form of a check to Settlement Class Members will be made only after the Court grants Final Approval to the Settlement and after any appeals are resolved (see “Final Approval Hearing” below). If there are appeals, resolving them can take time. Please be patient.
Top - How do I exclude myself from the Settlement?
If you do not want benefits from the Settlement, and you want to keep the right to sue or continue to sue ADMI on your own about the legal issues in this case, then you must take steps to get out of the Settlement. This is called excluding yourself—or it is sometimes referred to as “opting out” of the Settlement Class.
To exclude yourself from the Settlement, you must send a timely letter by mail to:
Elfstrom v. ADMI Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 301132
Los Angeles, CA 90030-1133Your request to be excluded from the Settlement must be personally signed by you under penalty of perjury and contain a statement that indicates your desire to be “excluded from the Settlement Class” and that, absent of excluding yourself or “opting out,” you are “otherwise a member of the Settlement Class".
Your exclusion request must be postmarked no later than March 1, 2024. You cannot ask to be excluded on the phone, by email, or at the Settlement Website.
You may opt out of the Settlement Class only for yourself.
Top - If I do not exclude myself, can I sue Aspen Dental for the same thing later?
No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up the right to sue ADMI for the claims that the Settlement resolves. You must exclude yourself from this Settlement Class in order to pursue your own lawsuit.
Top - What am I giving up to stay in the Settlement Class?
Unless you opt out of the Settlement, you cannot sue or be part of any other lawsuit against ADMI about the issues in this case, including any existing litigation, arbitration, or proceeding. Unless you exclude yourself, all of the decisions and judgments by the Court will bind you.
The Settlement Agreement is available under the Case Documents section of this website. The Settlement Agreement provides more detail regarding the Releases and describes the Released Claims with specific descriptions in necessary, accurate legal terminology, so read it carefully. You can talk to the law firms representing the Settlement Class listed in Question 15 at no charge to you, or you can, at your own expense, talk to your own lawyer if you have any questions about the Released Claims or what they mean.
Top - If I exclude myself, can I still get a payment?
No. You will not get a payment from the Settlement Fund if you exclude yourself from the Settlement.
Top - Do I have a lawyer in the case?
The Court has appointed the following lawyers as “Class Counsel” to represent all members of the Settlement Class.
Scott Edelsberg, Esq.
Christopher Gold, Esq.
Edelsberg Law, PA
20900 NE 30th Avenue, Suite 417
Aventura, FL 33180Andrew J. Shamis, Esq.
Garrett O. Berg, Esq.
Shamis & Gentile, P.A.
14 NE 1st Avenue, Suite 705
Miami, FL 33132You will not be charged for these lawyers. If you want to be represented by another lawyer, you may hire one to appear in Court for you at your own expense.
Top - How will the lawyers be paid?
Class Counsel intend to request up to 25% of the Settlement Fund for attorneys’ fees which will include reimbursement of reasonable, actual out-of-pocket expenses incurred in the litigation. The fees and expenses awarded by the Court will be paid out of the Settlement Fund. The Court will decide the amount of fees and expenses to award.
Class Counsel will also request that a Service Award of $5,000.00 for Plaintiff be paid from the Settlement Fund for their service as Class Representative on behalf of the whole Settlement Class.
Top - How do I tell the Court I do not like the Settlement?
If you are a Settlement Class Member (and do not exclude yourself from the Settlement Class), you can object to any part of the Settlement. To object, you must timely submit a letter that includes the following:
- A heading that includes the case name and case number— Elfstrom v. Aspen Dental Management, Inc., Case No. 23-CA-000244;
- Your name, address, telephone number, the cell phone number at which you received text messages from ADMI and if represented by counsel, the name, bar number, address, and telephone number of your counsel;
- A signed statement stating, under penalty of perjury, that you received one or more text messages from ADMI and are a member of the Settlement Class;
- A statement of all your objections to the Settlement including your legal and factual basis for each objection;
- A statement of whether you intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing, either with or without counsel, and if with counsel, the name of your counsel who will attend;
- The number of times which your counsel and/or counsel’s law firm have objected to a class action settlement within the five years preceding the date that you file the objection, the caption of each case in which counsel or the firm has made such objection, and a copy of any orders related to or ruling upon counsel’s or the firm’s prior objections that were issued by the trial and appellate courts in each listed case;
- A list of all persons who will be called to testify at the Final Approval Hearing in support of the objection; and
- Any and all agreements that relate to the objection or the process of objecting—whether written or verbal—between you or your counsel and any other person or entity.
If you wish to object, you must file your objection with the Court (using the Court’s electronic filing system or in any manner in which the Court accepts filings) and mail your objection to each of the following three (3) addresses, and your objection must be postmarked by March 1, 2024.
TopClerk of the Court Class Counsel Defendants' Counsel Twentieth Judicial Circuit
Lee County, Florida
1700 Monroe St.
Fort Myers, FL 33901Scott Edelsberg, Esq.
Edelesberg Law, PA
20900 NE 30th Ave.
Suite 417
Aventura, FL 33180Samantha L. Southall
Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney PC
2 South Biscayne Blvd.
Suite 1500
Miami, FL 33131 - What is the difference between objecting and asking to be excluded?
Objecting is telling the Court that you do not like something about the Settlement. You can object to the Settlement only if you do not exclude yourself. Excluding yourself is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Settlement. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object to the Settlement because it no longer affects you.
Top - When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the Settlement?
The Court will hold a hearing to decide whether to approve the Settlement and any requests for fees and expenses (“Final Approval Hearing”).
The Court has scheduled a Final Approval Hearing on March 21, 2024 at 9:00 am (EST). The hearing may be moved to a different date or time without additional notice, so it is a good idea to check the Settlement website for updates. At this hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Court will also consider the requests by Class Counsel for attorneys’ fees and expenses and for Service Award to the Class Representative. If there are objections, the Court will consider them at that time. After the hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement. It is unknown how long these decisions will take.
Top - Do I have to attend the hearing?
No. Class Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. But, you are welcome to attend the hearing at your own expense. If you send an objection, you do not have to come to Court to talk about it. As long as you submitted your written objection on time to the proper addresses and it complies with all the other requirements set forth above, the Court will consider it. You may also pay your own lawyer to attend the hearing, but it is not necessary.
Top - May I speak at the hearing?
You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing. To do so, your timely filed objection must include a statement of whether you intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing (see Question 17 above).
You cannot speak at the hearing if you exclude yourself from the Settlement.
Top - What happens if I do nothing at all?
If you are a Settlement Class Member and do nothing, meaning you do not file a timely Claim, you will not get benefits from the Settlement. Further, unless you exclude yourself, you will be bound by the judgment entered by the Court.
Top - How do I get more information?
This Notice summarizes the proposed Settlement. You are urged to review more details in the Settlement Agreement. For a complete, definitive statement of the Settlement terms, refer to the Settlement Agreement posted on the Case Documents section of this website.
Top
You also may write with questions to the Settlement Administrator at Elfstrom v ADMI Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 301132, Los Angeles, CA 90030-1133 or call the toll-free number, 1-877-392-0259.