City of Detroit Per-Acre Drainage Charges Class Action Settlement

A $29.5 million settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit alleging the City of Detroit imposed per-acre drainage charges that disproportionally affected a small subset of property owners based on the impervious acreage of their properties.

If you owned or occupied non-residential, parcel-based real property and you were billed and/or paid per-acre drainage charges to the City of Detroit between July 18, 2013 and June 30, 2017, you may be entitled to benefits from the class action settlement.

The plaintiffs in this Detroit drainage charges class action lawsuit are non-residential water and sanitary sewer customers who paid per-acre drainage charges imposed by the City of Detroit. They claim that the per-acre drainage charges are not motivated by a regulatory purpose; instead, they are allegedly imposed to raise revenue.

According to the Detroit drainage charges class action lawsuit, Class Members were charged in a manner that was disproportionate to Detroit’s actual costs of providing drainage services, and that they were therefore unlawful under the protections provided by the Michigan Constitution. The plaintiffs claim they are entitled to a refund of the per-acre drainage charges from the City of Detroit.

The City of Detroit denies that the per-acre drainage charges are improper. However, it has agreed to settle the per-acre drainage charges class action lawsuit to avoid the expense, inconvenience and risk associated with protracted litigation.

The deadline to opt out of or object to the Detroit drainage fee settlement is Dec. 6, 2017.

The Detroit drainage fee class action settlement was preliminarily approved on Sept. 12, 2017.

Who’s Eligible

Class Members of the Detroit drainage fee settlement include all owners and occupiers of non-residential, parcel-based real property who were billed and/or paid per-acre drainage charges between July 18, 2013 and June 30, 2017.

Potential Award

Varies.

For eligible Class Members, the Detroit drainage fee settlement offers refunds either as a cash payment or as a credit on the Class Members’ water and sewer account. Class Members are entitled to a pro rata share, which will be determined based in part on the total amount of charges the Class Member paid during the Class Period and the total number of charges assessed against all Class Members during the Class Period.

Class Members fall into one of three groups:

• Group 1: Includes Class Members who have outstanding balances equal to or greater than their pro rata shares. Group 1 Class Members are entitled to a credit against their outstanding balances in the amount of their pro rata shares.
• Group 2: Includes Class Members who have outstanding balances that are less than their pro rata shares. Group 2 Class Members are entitled to receive a credit against their outstanding balances and a payment in the amount by which their pro rata shares exceed their outstanding balances.
• Group 3: Includes Class Members with no outstanding balances. Group 3 Class Members are entitled to a payment or account credit equal to the amount of their respective pro rata share.

Additionally, the City of Detroit has agreed to write off and not attempt to collect outstanding unpaid balances for per-acre drainage charges incurred by Class Members prior to July 18, 2013.

The City of Detroit has also agreed to cap per-acre drainage charges imposed on Class Members at a rate of not more than $661 per impervious acre for a 12-month period starting Aug. 1, 2017.

Proof of Purchase

N/A. Class Members who file a Claim Form must provide the property address and dates for which they were billed and/or paid for per-acre drainage charges.

Claim Form

CLICK HERE TO FILE A CLAIM (PDF) »

Claim Form Deadline

12/6/2017

NOTE: Class Members who would like a cash payment instead of an account credit must submit a Claim Form. Credits will automatically be applied to eligible Class Members’ accounts if they do not opt out of the settlement or file a Claim Form for a cash payment.

Case Name

Michigan Warehousing Group LLC, et al. v. City of Detroit, et al., Case No. 15-010165-CZ, in the Wayne County Circuit Court for the State of Michigan

Final Hearing

1/5/2018

Settlement Website

kickhamhanley.com/class-action/mwg-v-detroit

Claims Administrator

Michigan Warehousing Group LLC v. City of Detroit
c/o GCG
P.O. Box 10494
Dublin, OH 43017-4094
MWDQuestions@ChooseGCG.com

Class Counsel

Gregory Hanley
KICKHAM HANLEY PLLC

Defense Counsel

Sonal Hope Mithani
MILLER CANFIELD PADDOCK AND STONE PLC