Frequently Asked Questions

• • Notice Plans
  • • How do I prove that I satisfied due process?
    • Due process calls for a desire to actually inform. That desire is shown through providing the Court with evidence that the class was adequately reached with notices that are easy to understand. Our experts have successfully testified on due process notice determinations.
    • How do you avoid objections to notice?
    • Although there is no way to completely avoid objections, one benefit of having our experts design a notice program is the program will be developed to avoid any notice objections. If objections to notice do occur, our experts can easily address and overcome objections and are qualified to testify in court to stand behind a notice program. Our experts have successfully rebutted every notice objection that has ever been raised.
    • How do I protect from collateral attack?
    • You can protect from collateral attack by hiring a notice expert that designs notice programs that will withstand any challenge that may arise, including the highest level of scrutiny from appellate courts. At Hilsoft Notifications, we leave nothing to chance or speculations. As a result, we have prevailed with past appellate challenges with ease.
    • What factors are included in the cost of a notice program?
    • The most common factors that determine the cost of a notice program, include: media planning and buying - negotiating the lowest rates possible with the various media, placing notices, tracking all activity to verify placements (e.g., date, positioning, television ratings), coordinating with the settlement administrator (defendant or third party), producing all forms of notice for release to media production departments, and drafting declarations or affidavits for court approval of the notice program. As part of our fiduciary responsibility, Hilsoft negotiates the most efficient media plan possible—achieving the maximum reach at the minimum cost.
  • Class Members
  • • What if my class is complicated?
    • No matter how complex the class may be, Hilsoft Notifications can identify how to reach class members to provide the best notice practicable under the circumstances. We have created hundreds of court-approved notices, tackling the challenges of communicating complex legal content to distinct psychographic groups, ranging from rural, low income homeowners to affluent foreign stock investors.
    • Do the demographics of my class impact notice?
    • Class demographics and behavioral characteristics play a key role in determining how to best communicate and disseminate information. Rarely are the needs of notice programs exactly the same—how one attracts the attention and effectively communicates with an elderly Aboriginal is very different than a highly educated corporate professional. Our experts perform the necessary research and analysis to fully understand the class. We study geographic, demographic and cultural characteristics as well product and media usage data. Our experts are qualified to analyze and opine on media audience data and the percentage of class members reached. We determine the most effective mixture of media to reach the greatest practicable number of class members as efficiently as possible. Our recommendations are supported with measurable data, leaving nothing to chance or speculation.
  • Direct Mailed Notice
  • • What if I don’t have a mailing list?
    • Hilsoft Notifications' talented team is uniquely qualified to identify how to reach unknown classes. Using widely accepted media audience data and tools to quantify the "net reach" of class members, our experts are able to determine the best way to notify target class members through an optimal mix of media and other notice dissemination methods when individual mailed notice is not an available option.
    • What if I have a partial mailing list?
    • When class member mailing lists are not comprehensive, targeted paid media notice is often needed to achieve an overall effective reach among the class. Hilsoft Notifications’ knowledge of reach calculating and audience de-duplicating methodologies allow us to determine the additional reach required via paid media. Utilizing media audience data and tools widely accepted by the communications industry, as well as state and federal courts, we create programs that incorporate the best mix of paid media in combination with mailings. Courts have consistently approved notice programs that we have designed using a combination of mailed and paid notice.
    • What if my mailing list is outdated?
    • Hilsoft Notifications has developed inexpensive address updating protocols to ensure that a program with an outdated mailing list can result in a reasonable and successful mailing effort. These steps are implemented prior to the initial mailing, and often afterwards on pieces that are returned as non-deliverable. Our unique protocols often save time and money as well as result in a higher delivery rate.
    • Are there ways to improve my individual notice campaign?
    • Hilsoft Notifications has led the class action notice industry in analyzing the effectiveness of direct mailed notice. Direct notice via first-class mail is feasible when mailing lists of class members are available. We have also worked on numerous cases that exemplify the ability to find better notice alternatives, either via more cost effective and efficient media programs in lieu of expensive mailings or by identifying improvements in the manner in which necessary mailings are undertaken.
  • International and Multistate
  • • What if I have a dual action in the United States and Canada?
    • Hilsoft Notifications has unparalleled expertise in effectively reaching class members in the United States and Canada. We have legal knowledge of class action law in the United States and Canada and understand how dual actions interrelate. We design notice programs for both countries that are consistent in terms of reach delivered among the class. We validate our reach calculations for both the United States and Canada using widely accepted media research tools and audience data, thereby providing courts with the quantifiable details they need to determine the adequacy of the program. We also have experience reaching French-Canadian and Aboriginal class members with easy to understand notices.
    • How do I prove manageability with foreign class members?
    • Hilsoft Notifications has frequently been called upon to study the manageability issues surrounding the determination of whether a notice program would effectively reach class members in different countries and properly notify them of their rights. In each situation, we confidently assured courts of our capabilities to develop and implement an effective multi-national notice program. With a multitude of unique issues of providing notice within various countries from adequate media coverage to effective notice translation, our accomplishments in the international media arena are unparalleled in the legal notice field.
    • Can notice be provided on a statewide basis?
    • Hilsoft Notifications has successfully designed and implemented numerous statewide and multi-state class action notice programs. Our experts determine the most cost efficient way to purchase media to acquire effective reach among the class. Our experience, combined with our knowledge of industry accepted media research tools and audience data, allows us to accurately quantify and opine on reach at all geographical levels, from zip-code specific to statewide.
  • Procedural Issues
  • • My class has been certified and is moving toward trial, now what?
    • Hilsoft Notifications can help develop a notice program that will withstand any notice objections. Our experts can testify via affidavit or testimony regarding the adequacy of the proposed notice plan and explain why it is the best notice practicable under the circumstances.
    • How do I satisfy the CAFA notice requirement?
    • The Class Action Fairness Act created specific requirements for the timing and dissemination of class notices to federal and state officials. Our CAFA noticing protocols have been approved in numerous cases and our notice programs have withstood additional scrutiny by federal and state officials.