Frequently Asked Questions

The purpose of the Notice is to let you know that a proposed Settlement has been reached in the case 
Eric LaGuardia, et al. v Designer Brands Inc., et al., Case No. 2:20-cv-02311 (S.D. Ohio). You have legal rights and options that you may act on before the Court decides whether to approve the proposed Settlement. Because your legal rights will be affected by this Settlement, it is extremely important that you read the Notice carefully. The Notice summarizes the Settlement and your legal rights under it.

In a class action, one or more people, called Settlement Class Representatives, sue on behalf of people who have similar claims. All of these people are a class, or class members. One court resolves the issues for all class members, except those who exclude themselves from the class by opting out. Here, the Settlement Class Representatives allege that Designer Brands and/or DSW violated the TCPA by continuing to send marketing text messages to consumers’ cellular telephone numbers after they had made a request to Designer Brands and/or DSW to not receive future marketing text messages from September 1, 2018 through September 1, 2024. The Court has certified a class for Settlement purposes only (the “Settlement Class”). The Honorable Sarah D. Morrison of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio (the “Court”) oversees this class action. Designer Brands and DSW deny that they did anything wrong and deny that this lawsuit should be certified as a class action in litigation. The Court has not decided who is correct.

The Court did not decide in favor of Plaintiffs or Designer Brands and DSW regarding whether or not Designer Brands and/or DSW are liable under the TCPA. Instead, both sides agreed to a settlement of the legal claims in the complaint to avoid the cost of a trial, the risk and uncertainty of proceeding forward in the lawsuit, and to provide compensation for Settlement Class Members. The Settlement Class Representatives and Class Counsel believe that the proposed Settlement is in the best interests of the Settlement Class.
 

You are in the Settlement Class if, while in the United States, you were sent a marketing text message from Designer Brands and/or DSW or on their behalf to your cellular telephone number after already making a request to Designer Brands and/or DSW not to receive future marketing text messages. If you received Notice regarding this via email or text message it is because your number was texted by Designer Brands and/or DSW during Class Period and therefore you may be a Settlement Class Member. If you have questions about whether you are in the Settlement Class, you may call (833) 421-9699 or visit the Documents section for more information.

Designer Brands and DSW have agreed to pay up to $4,429,180 to cover individual payments to Settlement Class Members who submit a valid Claim Form, costs associated with administration of the Settlement, attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses awarded to Class Counsel, and a Service Award to each class representatives. Settlement Class Members who submit a timely claim will receive a cash payment, which is expected to be $70. If the amount of the Settlement Fund is insufficient to pay $70 to each Settlement Class Member who files a valid Claim Form, payments will be reduced and paid on a pro rata (a legal term meaning equal share) basis. In other words, your payment could decrease depending on the number of valid Claim Forms submitted by Settlement Class Members.

To qualify for payment, you must submit a valid Claim Form on or before June 30, 2025. There are multiple ways to submit a Claim Form. You may submit a Claim Form online at this Settlement Website by clicking "submit a claim" on the home page and following the directions. A paper Claim Form is also available upon request by downloading it here or by calling the Settlement Administrator at (833) 421-9699. Read the instructions on the Claim Form carefully, fill out the form, sign it, and submit it online or mail it postmarked no later than June 30, 2025.

The Court will hold a hearing on July 31, 2025 to decide whether to approve the Settlement. If the Settlement is approved, appeals may still follow. It is always uncertain when these appeals can be resolved and resolving them can take more than a year. No payments will be made until the Court approves the Settlement at the hearing and all appeals are Final. Please be patient.

Unless you exclude yourself by opting out, you will be part of the Settlement Class and will remain a Settlement Class Member, even if you do not submit a Claim Form. That means you cannot sue, continue to sue, or be part of any other lawsuit against Designer Brands and DSW regarding any text messages received from Designer Brands and DSW during September 1, 2018, through September 1, 2024, including, but not limited to, claims asserted in the lawsuit or arising out of the facts and circumstances asserted in the lawsuit. If the settlement is approved and becomes Final and not subject to appeal, then you and all Settlement Class Members release all “Released Claims” against all “Released Parties.” It also means that all of the Court’s orders will apply to you and legally bind you. The Settlement Agreement (available here) describes the legal claims you are releasing (the “Released Claims”) and against whom you are releasing legal claims (“Released Parties”) in detail, so read it carefully. To summarize, the release includes, but is not limited to, TCPA claims arising out of or related to any text messages received from Designer Brands and DSW during September 1, 2018 through September 1, 2024.

If you do not want a payment from this Settlement, but you want to keep the right to sue or continue to sue Designer Brands and DSW, then you must take steps to remove yourself from the Settlement Class. This is called excluding yourself or opting out of the Settlement Class. To exclude yourself or opt out from the Settlement Class, you must send a letter saying that you want to be excluded from the Eric LaGuardia, et al. v Designer Brands Inc., et al, Case No. 2:20-cv-02311 Settlement. You must sign the letter and include a statement that you wish to be excluded from this action. Please be sure to include your name, address, telephone number where you may be contacted and the telephone number(s) which you received marketing text message(s) from Defendants relating to the claims asserted in this Action and a statement that the Settlement Class Member wishes to be excluded form the Settlement Class. You must mail your Opt-Out Request postmarked no later than May 2, 2025 to the following address:

Laguardia v. Designer Brands

c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC

P.O. Box 225391

New York, NY 10150-5391

You cannot exclude yourself or opt out of the Settlement on the phone, by text message, online, or email. If you ask to be excluded, you will not get any payment, and you cannot object to the Settlement. If you ask to be excluded, you will not be legally bound by anything that happens in this Action. Mass requests for exclusion are not allowed; your Opt-Out Request or exclusion must be made individually.

The Court has appointed Andrew J. Shamis and Garrett O. Berg of Shamis and Gentile, P.A.; Jeffrey Wilens of Lakeshore Law Center; Alex M. Tomasevic of Nicholas & Tomasevic, LLP; and Jeffrey P. Spencer of The Spencer Law Firm to represent you and other Settlement Class Members. These lawyers are called Settlement Class Counsel. You will not be personally charged by these lawyers. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense. Class Counsel will ask the Court to approve payment of 25% of the Settlement Fund not to exceed $1,107,295 and costs not to exceed $34,000. This payment will compensate Settlement Class Counsel for investigating the facts, litigating the lawsuit, and negotiating the Settlement. Settlement Class Counsel also will request a Service Award of up to $10,000 for each of the Settlement Class Representatives to compensate for their time and effort in pursuing this lawsuit on behalf of the Settlement Class. The Court may award less than these amounts.

If you are a Settlement Class Member and you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement Class, you can object to the Settlement if you do not like any part of it. You may give reasons why you think the Court should not approve it. The Court will consider your views. To object, you must make your objection in writing or a Notice of Intent to Object and file it with the Court in the case of Eric LaGuardia, et al. v Designer Brands Inc., et al, Case No. 2:20-cv-02311. The written objection must contain information sufficient to allow the parties to confirm that you are a Settlement Class Member, including: 

1. The name of the case and case number;
2. Your full name, address, telephone number, and personal signature; 
3. A statement of your specific objections, and a detailed statement of the factual and legal basis for such objections;
4. The identity of all witnesses, including each witnesses’ name and address, and a summary of each witnesses’ proposed testimony and documents that you would like the Court to consider; 
5. The name, address, bar number and contact information of any attorney you intend to have assert your objections before the Court;
6. A statement identifying the number of class action settlements to which you have objected to in the last three years, and listing those cases by case name and number; and 
7. A statement whether you and your attorney(s) intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing.

If your attorney intends to appear at the Final Approval Hearing, they must: 

1. A statement of the legal and factual basis for each objection;
2. A list of all witnesses the Settlement Class Member may seek to call at the Final Approval Hearing;
3. A list of all legal authority the Settlement Class Member will present at the Final Approval Hearing; and
4. An identification of the Settlement Class Member’s full name and phone numberat which the Settlement Class Member received marketing text message(s) from Defendants. 

You must file the objection with the Court no later than May 2, 2025.

LaGuardia, et al. v Designer Brands, Inc. et al, 

Case No. 2:20-cv-02311

Joseph P. Kinneary U.S. Courthouse

Room 167

85 Marconi Boulevard

Columbus, OH 43215

You must also send your objection to the Settlement Administrator postmarked no later than May 2, 2025, at:

Laguardia v. Designer Brands

c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC

P.O. Box 225391

New York, NY 10150-5391

Objecting simply means telling the Court that you do not like something about the Settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Settlement Class. Excluding yourself from the Settlement Class is telling the Court that you do not want to be part of the Settlement Class. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object because the lawsuit no longer affects you.

The Court will hold the Final Approval Hearing on July 31, 2025, before the Hon. Sarah D. Morrison. The purpose of the hearing is for the Court to determine whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, adequate, and in the best interests of the Settlement Class. At the hearing, the Court will hear any objections and arguments concerning the fairness of the proposed Settlement, including those related to the amount requested by Settlement Class Counsel for attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses, and the service award to the Settlement Class Representatives. After the Final Approval Hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement. It is unknown how long these decisions will take.
 

Note: The date and time of the Final Approval Hearing is subject to change by Court Order. Any changes will be posted on this Settlement Website.

No. Class Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. But you are welcome to attend the Final Approval Hearing at your own expense. If you send an objection, you do not have to attend the Final Approval Hearing to talk about it. As long as your written objection was filed by the deadline, and meets the other criteria described above and in the Settlement Agreement, the Court will consider it. You may also pay a lawyer to attend, but you do not have to. If you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement Class, you may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing concerning any part of the proposed Settlement Agreement. If you filed an objection and intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing, you must follow the procedure explained in the Settlement Agreement and noted above. You cannot speak at the Final Approval Hearing if you exclude yourself from the Settlement Class.

If you do nothing, you will get no money from this Settlement. You must file a Claim Form to be eligible for payment. You will also not be able to start a lawsuit, continue with a lawsuit, or be part of any other lawsuit against Designer Brands and DSW about the legal issues released in this lawsuit.

The Notice summarizes the proposed Settlement. More details are in the Settlement Agreement. You may review the Settlement Agreement here. You can also get a copy of the Settlement Agreement by writing the Settlement Administrator. You can call (833) 421-9699 toll-free; write to Laguardia v. Designer Brands, c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC, P.O. Box 225391, New York, NY 10150-5391; or visit the FAQ section of this website, where you will find answers to common questions about the Settlement, a Claim Form, update your address, plus other information to help you determine whether you are a Settlement Class Member. 

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT, THE JUDGE, OR DESIGNER BRANDS AND/OR DSW WITH QUESTIONS ABOUT THE SETTLEMENT OR CLAIMS PROCESS.