Records show that you farmed Kona coffee in the Kona District and sold Kona coffee between February 27, 2015, and July 31, 2023. For more details, please refer to FAQ 3 below.

The Court sent you the Notices to inform you of new Settlements in the class action lawsuit Corker, et al. v. Costco Wholesale Corp., et al., No. 1:19‑cv‑00290, United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. The Notices outlined the terms of the Settlements, who is a Settlement Class Member, your right to remain a member of the Settlement Class in the Settlements, how Settlement funds will be paid, how to comment on or object to the Settlements, and how to exclude yourself from the Settlement Classes.

Judge Lasnik of the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington is overseeing this class action.

Those who brought the lawsuit are the “Plaintiffs,” and the parties being sued are the “Defendants.” There are also other Defendants who previously reached settlements with the Plaintiffs. Notice of those settlements was previously sent to you.

Plaintiffs allege that MNS, Ltd. (operating as ABC Stores) ("MNS") and Mulvadi Corporation ("Mulvadi") advertised, falsely designated, and/or sold coffee as originating from the Kona region in violation of the federal Lanham Act. Plaintiffs seek monetary damages and other relief allowed under the Lanham Act.

Although the Defendants deny Plaintiffs’ claims for liability and damages, they have agreed to settle the class action to avoid the time and expense of continuing the lawsuit.

A more complete description of the lawsuit is available in the documents on the Important Documents page, or in the file for the lawsuit maintained by the United States District Court for the Western District of Washington. See FAQ 17, below. Additionally, should you have questions regarding the lawsuit, you can submit them in writing to Class Counsel at the addresses provided under FAQ 13.

The Court has not ruled in favor of Plaintiffs or Defendants. Instead, the sides agreed to the Settlements before the case proceeded to a trial. Plaintiffs and their counsel believe that the Settlements are best for all members of the Settlement Class.

The MNS Settlement Class includes all persons and entities who, between February 27, 2015, and April 25, 2023, farmed Kona coffee in the Kona District and then sold their Kona coffee. The Mulvadi Settlement Class includes all persons and entities who, between February 27, 2015, and July 31, 2023, farmed Kona coffee in the Kona District and then sold their Kona coffee.

Excluded from the MNS Settlement Class are MNS, any Judges to whom the case is assigned, and their immediate families and staffs. Excluded from the Mulvadi Settlement Class are Mulvadi, any Judges to whom the case is assigned, and their immediate families and staffs.

If you are a Settlement Class Member, you are bound by all orders and judgments of the Court and by the Court’s final resolution of the Settlement Class claims in the lawsuit.

If you are still not sure if you are part of the Settlement Class, please review the Important Documents page for more information, email info@KonaCoffeeSettlement.com or call (toll-free) 1-833-667-1227. You may also contact Class Counsel (See FAQ 9).

Please do not contact the Court. 

The Settlements provide money for Settlement Class Members, require MNS to modify its practices concerning its sale of coffee products labeled as containing beans originating from the Kona region, and require Mulvadi to modify its practices relating to its purchase, sales, and labeling of of coffee products labeled as containing beans originating from the Kona Region

Under the Settlements, MNS made a total payment of $12,000,000 and Mulvadi made a total payment of $7,775,000. The Settlement Amounts were distributed to Settlement Class Members on a pro-rata basis (as calculated by Settlement Class Members’ reported sales volumes), less Court-awarded attorneys’ fees and expenses and service awards to the Class Representatives, and less any voluntary contributions for the benefit of the Kona region.

If you previously submitted a claim for payment in connection with the prior settlements, you did not need to re-submit your information. However, if you did not make a prior claim, you had to submit a Claim Form by no later than January 29, 2024, to receive a payment in the Settlements.

In exchange for the benefits received by the Class, MNS and Mulvadi are released from claims the Settlement Class Members may have against them relating to the claims asserted in the lawsuit, including claims relating to their labeling of coffee products that use the word “Kona.”

If you wanted to remain a Settlement Class Member, you did not need to take any action. However, if you wanted to receive your payment from the Settlements and did not submit a claim in connection with the prior settlements, you had to submit a Claim Form by no later than January 29, 2024. Class Counsel represents your interests as a member of the Settlement Classes. You had the right to retain your own counsel, but did not have to do so.

If you did not want to be in the Settlement Classes and you wanted to keep the right to sue MNS or Mulvadi about the same claims on your own, you had to take steps to get out of the Settlement Class. This is called excluding yourself from or “opting out”. The deadlines to request exclusion from the MNS and Mulvadi Settlement Classes have passed.

The deadlines to request exclusion from the MNS and Mulvadi Settlement Classes have passed.

The Court has appointed the following law firms to represent the Settlement Classes:

These lawyers are called “Class Counsel.” You do not have to directly pay Class Counsel. If you wanted your own lawyer, and to have that lawyer appear in court, you could have hired one at your own expense.

Class Counsel requested that the Court award Class Counsel reimbursement of litigation expenses, as well as fees calculated not to exceed 25 percent of the total economic value of all settlements reached to date. Class Counsel also requested service awards in each of the Settlements of $2,500 to each of the farms serving as class representatives. The attorneys’ fees, expenses, and service awards awarded by the Court will be paid from the Settlement Funds. Again, if you choose to hire your own attorney, you will be responsible for that attorney’s fees and expenses.

You did not need to hire your own lawyer, but you could have elected to do so. If you wanted your own lawyer to speak for you or to appear in Court, you or your lawyer had to file a Notice of Appearance. If you hired a lawyer to appear for you in the lawsuit, you will have to pay that lawyer on your own.

You should also consult your own tax advisor regarding the tax consequences to you of the settlements, including, without limitation, any tax reporting obligations you may have with respect to the settlements.

The Court appointed Plaintiffs Bruce Corker d/b/a Rancho Aloha, Colehour Bondera and Melanie Bondera d/b/a Kanalani Ohana Farm, Robert Smith and Cecelia Smith d/b/a Smithfarms, and Smithfarms LLC as Class Representatives. The Class Representatives work with Class Counsel on behalf of all Settlement Class Members to present the views of Settlement Class Members to Class Counsel and the Court. The Class Representatives are each entitled to a Service Award, not to exceed $2,500 per farm for each of the Settlements.

Claimants had option to donate a portion of theirsettlement payment to Public Citizen Foundation, a non-profit organization that will use the funds towards its work “to ensure that consumers are protected, and that honest competition is the standard in food labeling.” The option was shown on the claim form. You could have done so even if you did not elect to do so in connection with prior settlements. You could also have altered the amount of any prior donation by notifying the Administrator by emailing info@KonaCoffeeSettlement.com or writing to: Kona Coffee Farmers Settlement, c/o JND Legal Administration, PO Box 91232, Seattle, WA 98111. You did not need to notify the Administrator if you made a voluntary contribution a previous settlement distribution and wanted to make the same percentage voluntary contribution from this distribution.

The deadline to object to the Settlements with MNS and Mulvadi have passed.

The Court held Final Approval Hearings to consider whether the Settlements are fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Hearing for the Settlement with MNS took place on September 21, 2023, at 11:00 a.m. (Pacific Time). The Hearing for the Settlement with Mulvadi took place on November 30, 2023, at 11:30 a.m. (Pacific Time). At the Hearings, the Court considered whether to approve the Settlements and the motions for attorneys’ fees and expenses. If comments or objections have been received, the Court considered them at this time.

Attendance was not required, even if you properly mailed a written objection or comment. Class Counsel answered the Court’s questions, including concerning objections or comments. If you or your lawyer wanted to attend the Hearing, you were welcome to come at your own expense. However, it was not necessary that you attend. If you filed an objection to or comment about the Settlements, as long as the objection or comment was postmarked before the applicable deadline, the Court considered it, regardless of whether you or your privately retained attorney appeared at the Hearing.

If you wanted to speak or have your own lawyer speak at the Final Approval Hearings, you had to give the Court a paper that is called a “Notice of Appearance.”  The Notice of Appearance also had to be filed with the Court and mailed to the attorneys for the Parties.

The notices summarize the Settlements and your rights and options as a Settlement Class Member. To find out more information, please review the relevant case documents on the Important Documents page, call 1-833-667-1227 or write to:

Kona Coffee Farmers Settlement Administrator
c/o JND Legal Administration
P.O. Box 91232
Seattle, WA 98111

If you have a question about whether or not you are in the Settlement Classes, or about your rights and options as a Settlement Class Member, you may contact Class Counsel (see FAQ 9).

All court records, including the Settlement Agreements and other documents for the Lawsuit, may be examined in person and copied at the United States District Court, Western District of Washington, United States Courthouse, 700 Stewart Street, Suite 2310, Seattle, WA 98101.

Please do not telephone the Court, the Clerk of the Court, or counsel for MNS or Mulvadi.