H&R Block to Pay $21 Million in Class-Action Suit
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (May 12, 2001) - Tax preparation giant H&R Block Inc. said it will pay $21 million to settle a 1996 class-action lawsuit in Arizona brought against one of the company's financial services units.
The lawsuit originally filed against Olde Discount Corp., which H&R Block acquired in 1999, challenged Olde's advertising of commission-free trading programs, according to an Associated Press report.
"We settled to bring closure to expensive litigation that began long before our acquisition of Olde and direct all our energy to our strategic priorities," H&R Block President and Chief Executive Mark Ernst reportedly told AP.
The settlement is subject to final approval in Maricopa County Superior Court in Arizona. Block, through Olde, will distribute the $21 million to a fund to be used to pay claims, attorneys' fees and other administrative expenses related to the settlement, said AP.
-- NYSSCPA.ORG Newsbrief Staff