Frequently Asked Questions

The Settlements cover all persons who were participants, or were those participants’ respective beneficiaries entitled to benefits, in the African Methodist Episcopal Church Ministerial Retirement Annuity Plan on June 30, 2021 (“Class Member(s)”). According to records produced in the Lawsuit, you are a Class Member.

A Court authorized this Notice because you have a right to know about a proposed settlement of a class action lawsuit, and about all of your options, before the Court decides whether to finally approve it. The Notice explains the Lawsuit, the Settlements, your legal rights, the benefits that are available, who is eligible to receive them, and how to get them. The case is captioned In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation, Case No. 1:22-md-03035-STA-jay, and is currently pending in the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee.

On March 24, 2025, the Court preliminarily approved the AME Settlement and the Newport Settlement and directed the parties to issue the Notice. The Court will hold a Fairness Hearing (also known as a final approval hearing) on June 26, 2025 at 10:00 a.m., in Courtroom 1 of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, located at James Todd Courthouse, 111 South Highland Avenue, Jackson, TN 38301. The Fairness Hearing may be continued to another date without further notice. You’re encouraged to check the website for any changes to the hearing date, time, or location.

This Lawsuit was brought by AME Retirement Plan participants (collectively, “Plaintiffs”) against African Methodist Episcopal Church (“AME Church”), AMEC Ministerial Retirement Annuity Plan (the “Plan”), AMEC Department of Retirement Services, AMEC General Board, AMEC, Inc., and AMEC Council of Bishops (collectively the “AME Defendants”) and Newport Group, Inc. (“Newport”) (collectively, the “Settling Defendants”) as well as against Symetra Life Insurance Company (“Symetra”); Dr. Jerome V. Harris; Robert Eaton; Financial Freedom Funds, LLC; Financial Freedom Group, Inc.; Financial Technologies, LLC; Motorskill entures, Inc.; Motorskill Ventures I, L.P.; Motorskill Asia Ventures 1, L.P.; Rodney Brown and Company; Trinity Financial Consultants, LLC; Sandra Harris; and Day and Night Solar, LLC (“collectively referred to as the “Non-Settling Defendants”).  The operative consolidated complaint asserts ten claims for relief: (1) breach of fiduciary duty; (2) violation of the Tennessee Uniform Trust Code; (3) negligence; (4) conversion; (5) fraudulent concealment; (6) fraudulent misrepresentation; (7) breach of contract; (8) civil conspiracy; (9) aiding and abetting breach of fiduciary duty; and (10) professional negligence. Not all of these claims are asserted against each defendant. A copy of the complaint is available at amechurchretirementsettlement.com where you can review which specific claims are asserted against each defendant.

The AME Defendants and Newport deny all allegations in the Lawsuit. The Settlements therefore are not an admission of any wrongdoing by the AME Defendants or Newport or an indication that any law was violated. The Court has not ruled on the merits of the claims asserted by Plaintiffs against the AME Defendants and Newport in the Lawsuit. By approving the Settlements and issuing the Notice, the Court is not suggesting which side would win or lose this case if it went to trial.

The Court has not decided in favor of Plaintiffs, the AME Defendants, or Newport. There was no trial. The Settlements do not indicate that the Court or a jury would decide in favor of Plaintiffs against the AME Defendants or Newport. Additionally, the Lawsuit remains ongoing against the Non-Settling Defendants. However, to avoid additional expense, inconvenience, and risks of continued litigation, Plaintiffs, the AME Defendants, and Newport have concluded that it is in their respective best interests to settle the claims brought by Plaintiffs against the AME Defendants in the Action as well as to settle the claims brought by Plaintiffs and the AME Defendants gainst Newport.

These Settlements were reached after a lengthy and comprehensive exchange of extensive information about and investigation of the facts and legal arguments in support of, and against, all of the claims raised in the Lawsuit by any party. By settling now, the Plaintiffs, the AME Defendants, and Newport avoid the burden, expense, and uncertainty of continued litigation on the Plaintiffs’ claims against the AME Defendants and on the Plaintiffs and the AME Defendants’ claims against Newport.

If the Court grants final approval of the AME Settlement, the AME Defendants will pay Twenty Million Dollars ($20,000,000) (referred to as the “AME Settlement Amount”) to resolve the claims brought by Plaintiffs against the AME Defendants. If the Court grants final approval of the Newport Settlement, Newport will pay Forty Million Dollars ($40,000,000) (referred to as the “Newport Settlement Amount”) to resolve the claims brought by Plaintiffs and the AME Defendants against Newport. All claims against the Non-Settling Defendants are preserved and will continue to be litigated.

The AME Settlement Amount is $20,000,000 in cash adjusted to the present value from August 2, 2024, to the date that amount is paid into the Qualified Settlement Fund, which is an interest-bearing, tax-qualified trust account established for and held in trust for the sole benefit of the Class Members and for receipt of the AME Settlement Amount. The AME Settlement Amount will be paid in two installments: an Initial Deposit of $10,000,000 by no later than November 30, 2024, and the remaining balance of the Settlement amount by no later than May 30, 2025. The Initial Deposit has already been paid into the Qualified Settlement Fund. The AME efendants have agreed that the AME Settlement Amount will not be funded in any way through assessments and/or budget raises to any local churches, annual conferences, or district conferences.

The Newport Settlement Amount is $40,000,000 in cash and will be paid into the Qualified Settlement Fund within 14 days of the Court preliminarily approving the Newport Settlement.

Additionally, the net interest earned by the Qualified Settlement Fund prior to distribution will be distributed to the Settlement Class as part of the “Net Settlement Amount” (which equals the combined Settlement Amounts plus interest earned minus any Notice and Settlement Administration Expenses and/or awards of attorneys’ fees and costs or service awards to the named Plaintiffs).

Attorneys’ Fees and Costs. Because this is a class action lawsuit, the attorneys representing Plaintiffs and the Class (“Class Counsel”) must seek approval from the Court for an award of attorneys’ fees and costs for their time and expenses spent litigating the Action as well as for appropriate service awards for the named Plaintiffs for their time spent representing the Class and participating in the Action. Class Counsel intends to request that the Court award up to 33 and 1/3% of the combined Settlement Amounts plus interest earned in attorneys’ fees, approximately $1,200,000 in costs, and $20,000 as a service award for each named Plaintiff. Any award of attorneys’ fees and costs and any service awards will be paid out of the combined Settlement Amounts.

Class Counsel will submit their petition for attorneys’ fees, costs, and service awards on May 7, 2025 and a copy of their petition will be available here. Please note that Class Counsel reserves the right to petition for an additional award of attorneys’ fees and costs and for payment of appropriate service awards based on any additional recovery obtained from the on-Settling Defendants.

Every Class Member who does not opt out of either or both Settlements (the “Settlement Class”) will automatically be allocated a pro rata share of the Net Settlement Amount. You do not have to submit a claim form in order to be allocated a pro rata share of the Net Settlement Amount.

The Net Settlement Amount will be distributed pro rata to Settlement Class Members based on the ratio of the Class Member’s account alance as of June 30, 2021, to the total value of all Class Members’ account balances as of June 30, 2021, accounting for any distributions taken by participants between June 30, 2021, and the date those balances were retroactively calculated. The Settlement dministrator will be responsible for calculating how to allocate the Net Settlement Amount and will oversee the transfer of the Net settlement Amount from the Qualified Settlement Fund to the Qualified Trust.

The Qualified Trust is a trust account that has been established by the AME Church to operate the Legacy Fund (which is the portion of the Plan as it existed prior to the AME Church establishing a new Plan with Wespath after this Lawsuit commenced). The Qualified Trust is managed and invested by the Disciplina Group LLC, an independent professional investment company and fiduciary based in Nashville, Tennessee.

The Settlement Administrator will issue any tax forms as may be required by law for all amounts paid pursuant to the Settlements. The Settlement Administrator, AME Defendants and its counsel, Newport and its counsel, Plaintiffs and Class Counsel, and the Court cannot provide you with tax advice. Accordingly, you should consult with your tax advisor concerning the tax consequences and treatment of allocations under the Settlements.

Your individual share of the Net Settlement Amount will be based on the allocation described in FAQ 5. Your individual share of the Net Settlement Amount is provided on the notice letter you may have received. This amount is only an estimate, and the actual amount you receive may be more or less than the estimated amount. No shares will be allocated if the Court does not grant final approval of the Settlements.

If you do nothing and do not opt out of either or both Settlements, your pro-rata share of the Net Settlement Amount will be automatically deposited into the Qualified Trust on your behalf after the Court grants final approval of the Settlements. Then, for settlement Class Members who are eligible to take distributions, those Settlement Class Members will be able to take distributions from the Qualified Trust of their share of the Net Settlement Amount once the Net Settlement Amount has been transferred to the Qualified Trust.

In no event shall any Settlement Class Member be entitled to a distribution of their pro-rata share of the Net Settlement Amount prior to the transfer of the Net Settlement Amount to the Qualified Trust.

In other words, you will not receive a check or cash payment for your pro-rata share of the Net Settlement Amount. Rather you will be able to take a full or partial distribution of your pro-rata share based on your individual eligibility once the Court grants final approval of the Settlements and the Net Settlement Amount is transferred to the Qualified Trust.

If the Court finally approves the Settlements, the Court will enter judgment on Plaintiffs’ claims against the AME Defendants and Newport, and the judgment and Settlement Agreements will bind all Class Members who have not timely opted out of the Settlements and will bar all such Settlement Class Members from bringing certain claims against the AME Defendants and Newport as described below. Specifically, you will be giving up or “releasing” the claims described below:

Release of Claims Against the AME Defendants:  As more fully explained in the AME Settlement Agreement, by operation of the Final Approval and Final Judgment, and except as to such rights as may be created by the AME Settlement Agreement, Plaintiffs and each of the Settlement Class Members (those Class Members who did not timely opt out of the Settlements) shall waive, fully release and forever discharge the AME Released Parties from any and all claims in this Action or relating to the allegations of this Action the “Released Claims”), which includes any Unknown Claims that could possibly exist with respect to the subject matter of the Released Claims.

“AME Released Parties” means the African Methodist Episcopal Church (“AME Church”) and African Methodist Episcopal Church, Inc., AMEC Ministerial Retirement Annuity Plan, AMEC Department of Retirement Services, AMEC General Board, AMEC, Inc., and AMEC Council of Bishops, and each of their former, past and present, direct and indirect, affiliates, departments, divisions, subdivisions, officers, directors, executives, employees, and attorneys. AME Released Parties does not include Dr. Jerome Harris and/or his Estate or any of the other Non-Settling Defendants in this Lawsuit.

Release of Claims Against Newport:  As more fully explained in the Newport Settlement Agreement, by operation of the Final Approval and Final Judgment, and except as to such rights as may be created by the Newport Settlement Agreement, Plaintiffs and each of the Settlement Class Members (those Class Members who did not timely opt out of the Settlements), on behalf of themselves, their spouses, family members, executors, representatives, administrators, guardians, wards, heirs, attorneys-in-fact, estates, bankruptcy estates, bankruptcy trustees, successors, predecessors, employees, attorneys, agents and assigns, and all those who claim through a Class Member or who assert claims (or could assert claims) on a Class Member’s behalf, shall waive, fully release and forever discharge the Newport Released Parties from any and all claims in this Action or relating to the allegations of this Action the “Released Claims”), which includes any Unknown Claims that could possibly exist with respect to the subject matter of the Released Claims, as defined in Section 2.26 of the Newport Settlement Agreement.

“Newport Released Parties” means Newport and its current and former parent entities, business units, business divisions, affiliates, or subsidiaries, and each and all of its current and former officers, directors, attorneys, employees, agents, trustees, parents, affiliates, subsidiaries, financial or investment advisors, consultants, accountants, investment bankers, commercial bankers, insurers, engineers, advisors, heirs, executors, trustees, general or limited partners or partnerships, personal representatives, estates, administrators, and each of its successors, predecessors, assigns, and assignees.  Newport Released Parties does not include Dr. Jerome Harris and/or his Estate or any of the other Non-Settling Defendants in this Lawsuit.

If you do not want to participate in either the AME Settlement, the Newport Settlement, or both Settlements, you should exclude yourself from either or both Settlements (that is, “opt out” of the Settlement(s)).

To opt out and exclude yourself from either the AME Settlement, the Newport Settlement, or both Settlements, you must mail a signed letter to the Settlement Administrator at the following address on or before June 6, 2025. No Request for Exclusion forms postmarked after this date will be valid.

In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation Settlement Administrator
c/o Verita Global
P.O. Box 301134
Los Angeles, CA 90030-1134

The signed letter must state your name, telephone number, current address, last four digits of your Social Security number, and one of the following statements depending on whether you are requesting to opt out of the AME Settlement, the Newport Settlement, or both Settlements:

A. “I, [NAME], voluntarily choose not to participate in the settlement of the Class Action against the AME Defendants and hereby waive any rights I may have to participate in the class settlement with the AME Defendants in the federal court lawsuit entitled In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation, Case No. 1:22-md-03035-STA-jay."

B. "I, [NAME], voluntarily choose not to participate in the settlement of the Class Action against the Defendant Newport and hereby waive any rights I may have to participate in the class settlement with Defendant Newport in the federal court lawsuit entitled In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation, Case No. 1:22 md-03035-STA-jay."

C. “I, [NAME], voluntarily choose not to participate in either the settlement of the Class Action against the AME Defendants or in the settlement of the Class Action against Defendant Newport and hereby waive any rights I may have to participate in the class settlements with the AME Defendants and Defendant Newport in the federal court awsuit entitled In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation, Case No. 1:22-md-03035-STA-jay.”

Requests to opt out that do not include all required information will be deemed null, void, and ineffective.

If you don’t think that either the AME Settlement, the Newport Settlement, or both Settlements are fair, you can object to the Settlement(s) and tell the Court that you don’t agree with the Settlement(s) or some part of it.

To do so, you must mail or file a written statement of objection to the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, or by filing them in person at any location of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, and be filed or postmarked on or before June 6, 2025. To be considered, the objection must state: (1) your full name; (2) your address; 3) the telephone number and email address where you may be contacted; (4) all grounds for the objection, with specificity and with factual and legal support for each stated ground; (5) the identity of any witnesses you may call to testify; (6) copies of any exhibits that you intend to introduce into evidence at the Fairness Hearing; (7) a statement of the identity (including name, address, law firm, phone number and email) of any lawyer who will be representing you with respect to any objection; (8) a statement of whether you intend to appear at the Fairness Hearing with or without counsel; (9) a statement as to whether the objection applies only to you, to you and a specific subset of the Class, or the entire Class; and (10) a statement as to whether you are objecting to the AME Settlement and/or the Newport Settlement.

A copy of the objection must also be delivered by hand, email, or first-class mail to Class Counsel and to the AME Defendants’ counsel and/or Newport’s counsel, depending on which Settlement(s) you are objecting to, at the mailing or email addresses listed in Section 8.3 of the AME and Newport Settlement Agreements, available here.

The written statement should also include the name of this action In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation, Case No. :22-md-03035-STA-jay. If you intend to appear at the Fairness Hearing and wish to speak at the hearing, you must include that in your objection. You do not have to be represented by a lawyer to object.  However, if you choose to retain a lawyer to represent you, you will be solely responsible for any attorneys’ fees and costs incurred.

Your objection must be received no later than June 6, 2025 or you will be deemed to have waived any objections.

The Court has scheduled a fairness hearing on June 26, 2025 at 10:00 a.m., in Courtroom 1 of the United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee, located at James Todd Courthouse, 111 South Highland Avenue, Jackson, TN 38301.  The Court will review the proposed Settlements and decide whether they are fair, reasonable, and adequate and whether they should be finally approved.  You are welcome, but not required, to attend this hearing, whether you agree with or object to the proposed Settlements.

The date of the fairness hearing may be changed without further notice to the Class. Before attending, please confirm the date of this hearing by contacting the Settlement Administrator.

If the Court grants final approval of the Settlements, notice of final judgment will be posted on the Settlement Administrator’s website here within seven calendar days after entry of the final order and judgment.

 A complete copy of the AME Settlement Agreement, the Newport Settlement Agreement, the Notice, and other important documents from the Lawsuit are available here. This website will be updated periodically to update the Class on any developments in the case.

If you have questions about the Settlements or would like more information, you should contact the Settlement Administrator, Verita Global at:

In re: AME Church Employee Retirement Fund Litigation Settlement Administrator
c/o Verita Global
P.O. Box 301134
Los Angeles, CA 90030-1134

You may also contact the Class Counsel listed below:

Matthew E. Lee
Jeremy R. Williams
Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC
919-600-5000

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT, THE ATTORNEYS FOR THE AME DEFENDANTS, OR THE ATTORNEYS FOR NEWPORT ABOUT THE NOTICE.