Brittaney Key v. Miracle Faith Center, Inc. d/b/a Apostolic Global Church

The purpose of the Notice is to inform you that a proposed Settlement has been reached in the class action lawsuit styled Brittaney Key v. Miracle Faith Center, Inc. d/b/a Apostolic Global Church, Case No. 3:22-cv-00075-TKW-MJF (N.D. Fla.). Because your rights will be affected by this Settlement, it is extremely important that you read the Notice carefully. The Notice summarizes the Settlement and your rights under it.

If you received a postcard or e-mail describing this Settlement, it is because Defendant’s records indicate that you may be a member of the Settlement Class in this action. The Settlement Class is defined in question 5 below.

In a class action, one or more people called Class Representative(s) (here, Plaintiff) sue on behalf of people who allegedly have similar claims. This group is called a class and the persons included are called Settlement Class Members. One court resolves the issues for all of the Settlement Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the class.

Here, Brittaney Key alleges that she and members of the class received prerecorded and/or artificial voice telephone calls on cellular phone numbers from Defendant without consent. Defendant denies Plaintiff’s allegations that the calls were made without consent or were unlawful whatsoever.  Defendant further asserts that Defendant acted in good faith to comply with all relevant laws. The Court has not ruled on the merits of Plaintiff’s claims or Defendant’s defenses. Defendant has agreed to enter into the Settlement, and by doing so has not conceded the truth or validity of any of the claims against it.

The Court has conditionally certified a class action for settlement purposes only. The Honorable T. Kent Wetherell, II is the judge in charge of the lawsuit.

The Court did not decide in favor of Plaintiff or Defendant. Instead, both sides agreed to this Settlement. That way, they avoid the risk and cost of further litigation and a potential trial, and the Settlement Class Members will receive compensation. Plaintiff and Class Counsel think the Settlement is best for all Settlement Class Members.

The Court has certified this case as a class action for settlement purposes only. The Settlement Class includes:

All persons in the United States who from the four years prior to the filing of this action (1) were called on their cellular telephone number by or on behalf of Defendant; (2) using a prerecorded or artificial voice; (3) for which the Defendant lacks adequate records of express consent.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Settlement Class specifically excludes persons in the following categories: (A) Defendant and their employees and agents; (B) members of the judiciary; and (C) all persons who file a timely and proper request to be excluded from the Settlement Class in accordance with Section VIII of the Settlement Agreement and Release.

If you are still not sure whether you are included in the Settlement Class, you can visit other sections of the Settlement Website, www.KeyTCPASettlement.com, or you may write to or call the Administrator for more information:

The Court has appointed lawyers from the law firms of Edwards Pottinger LLC and The Weitz Firm, LLC as Class Counsel to represent you and the other persons in the Settlement Class. You will not be personally charged by these lawyers.

Class Counsel will ask the Court to approve payment of up to thirty percent of the settlement fund to them for attorneys’ fees, plus the costs and expenses incurred litigating the claims in this matter, subject to the Court’s approval.

Settlement Fund. Defendant has agreed to pay $400,000.00 to cover: (1) payments to Settlement Class Members; (2) an award of attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses to Class Counsel; and (3) the costs of notice and administration of the Settlement.

Payments. A pro rata payment from the Settlement Fund will be made to all Settlement Class Members.

Settlement Class Members will receive a pro rata payment from the Settlement Fund, after deduction of court approved costs of notice and administration, attorneys’ fees, costs and other expenses.

You are giving up your right to legally pursue the Released Claims, as defined in the Settlement Agreement and Release. This means that if the Settlement is approved, you cannot pursue or continue to pursue any Released Claim against Defendant or any other Released Parties, whether on your own or as part of any other lawsuit, as explained in the Settlement Agreement and Release. It also means that all of the Court’s orders will apply to you and legally bind you. Unless you exclude yourself from the Settlement, the Court will find you have agreed to be part of the Settlement Class and have agreed to release Defendant and any other Released Parties, as defined in the Settlement Agreement and Release, from any and all claims that were asserted in the litigation and all claims that relate to or arise from Defendant placing telephone calls with prerecorded messages or artificial voice to you.

In summary, the Released Claims include, without limitation, all claims that were asserted or could have been asserted in the litigation based on Defendant allegedly placing telephone calls with prerecorded messages and/or artificial voice without consent, including, but not limited to, claims under the TCPA or any other statute or the common law, for any form of relief.

If you have any questions about the release or what it means, you can speak to Class Counsel, listed under Question 6 above, for free, or you can, at your own expense, talk to your own lawyer. The release does not apply to persons in the Settlement Class who timely exclude themselves.

A notice has been sent by U.S. Mail to all persons who have been identified as Settlement Class Members based on Defendant’s records. All Settlement Class Members who do not submit timely exclusion requests will be sent a Settlement Payment.

The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing to decide whether to approve the Settlement. If the Court approves the Settlement, after that, there may be appeals. If there are appeals, it is uncertain when they will conclude, but resolving them can take time, perhaps more than a year. Everyone that does not submit a timely exclusion request will be informed of the progress of the Settlement through information posted on the Settlement Website at www.KeyTCPASettlement.com. Please be patient.

If you want to keep your rights to pursue or continue to pursue any Released Claim against Defendant and/or any Released Parties, as defined in the Settlement Agreement and Release, then you must take steps to get out of the Settlement Class. This is called excluding yourself from, or opting-out of, the Settlement Class. If you exclude yourself, you will not be legally bound by anything that happens in this lawsuit and will not receive a payment.

To exclude yourself from the Settlement, you must submit an exclusion request form by mail.

An exclusion request form can be found on the Settlement Website and must be submitted by mail to the Administrator at:

The exclusion request must be postmarked by May 16, 2023.

To be valid, your exclusion form must be postmarked no later than May 16, 2023, the Exclusion Request Deadline, and shall clearly state the following in the written notice of exclusion: (a) identify the case name; (b) identify the full name, mailing address, and telephone number of the Class Member requesting exclusion; (c) identify the cellular telephone number(s) where the Class Member received a pre-recorded voice telephone call from Defendant relating to the litigation; (d) contain the statement that indicates a desire to be excluded from the Settlement Class in the litigation, “I hereby request that I be excluded from the proposed Settlement Class in Brittaney Key, Inc., v. Miracle Faith Center, Inc. dba Apostolic Global Church, Case No. 3:22-cv-00075-TKW-MJF (N.D. Fla.)”; and (e) be personally signed by the Settlement Class Member requesting exclusion. No request for exclusion will be valid unless all of the information described above is included. No person in the Settlement Class, or any person acting on behalf of or in concert or participation with that person in the Settlement Class, may exclude any other person in the Settlement Class from the Settlement Class.

To be valid, your exclusion request must be postmarked no later than May 16, 2023 to the Administrator at Key TCPA Settlement Administrator, Attn: Exclusions, PO Box 58220, Philadelphia, PA 19102.

No. If you do not exclude yourself, you give up any rights to pursue (or continue to pursue) any Released Claims against Defendant and/or any Released Parties.

No. If you ask to be excluded, you will not receive a Settlement payment, and you cannot object to the Settlement.

If you are in the Settlement Class, you can object to the Settlement or any part of the Settlement that you think the Court should reject, and the Court will consider your views. If you do not provide a written objection in the manner described below, you shall be deemed to have waived any objection and shall forever be foreclosed from making any objection to the fairness, reasonableness, or adequacy of the Settlement or the award of any attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses.

To be valid, the written objection must include: (a) the case name and number of the litigation; (b) the full name, address, and telephone number of the Settlement Class Member objecting and, if represented by counsel, of his/her counsel with counsel’s contact information; (c) the cellular telephone number(s) where he/she received pre-recorded voice telephone calls from Defendant relating to the litigation; (d) a statement that such calls were received without consent, and that the person objecting is a Class Member; (e) a statement of each objection, including the specific reasons, if any, for each objection, including any legal and factual support the objector wishes to bring to the Court’s attention and any evidence the objector wishes to introduce in support of the objection(s); (f) a statement of whether he/she intends to appear at the Final Approval Hearing, either with or without counsel; (g) a list all other cases in which the Class Member has filed an objection; (h) any and all agreements that relate to the objection or the process of objecting—whether written or oral—between objector or objector’s counsel and any other person or entity; and (i) the objector’s signature.

Class or group objections shall be prohibited.

Any Settlement Class Member who fails to object to the Settlement in the manner described above shall be deemed to have waived any such objection, shall not be permitted to object to any terms or approval of the Settlement at the Final Approval Hearing, and shall be foreclosed from seeking any review of the Settlement or the terms of the Settlement Agreement by appeal or other means.

To be considered, you must file your objections with the Court, or mail to the Court at the address below and be postmarked no later than May 16, 2023:

Clerk of Court
U.S. Courthouse
One North Palafox St.
Pensacola, FL 32502
Tel. 850-435-8440

Attention: Brittaney Key, Inc., v. Miracle Faith Center, Inc. dba Apostolic Global Church, Case No. 3:22-cv-00075-TKW-MJF (N.D. Fla.)

Your objections must also be mailed to the addresses below and postmarked no later than May 16, 2023.

If you file an objection, you will still obtain a benefit from this Settlement.

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

If you do nothing, you will receive a monetary award and you will give up your rights to pursue or continue to pursue Released Claims against Defendant and/or any other Released Parties. For information relating to what rights you are giving up see Question 10.

The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing on July 14, 2023 at 9:00am in Room 4 of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, United States Courthouse, One North Palafox St., Pensacola, Florida 32502. At this hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable and adequate. If there are valid objections that comply with the requirements in Question 16 above, the Court will also consider them and will listen to people who have asked to speak at the hearing. The Court will also decide how much to pay to Class Counsel.

The Final Approval Hearing may be moved to a different date or time without additional mailed notice, so please check the Settlement Website for updates.

No. Class Counsel will appear on behalf of the Settlement Class.  But, you are welcome to come, or have your own lawyer appear, at your own expense.

You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing, but only in connection with an objection that you have timely submitted to the Court according to the procedure set forth in Question 16 above. To speak at the Final Approval Hearing, you must also file a document with the Court stating your intention to appear. For this document to be considered, it must include: (a) the case name and number of the litigation; (b) the Settlement Class Member’s full name, address, telephone number, and signature, and, if represented by counsel, their contact information; (c) the cellular telephone number(s) where he/she received a pre-recorded telephone call from Defendant relating to the litigation; (d) copies of any papers, exhibits, or other evidence that the objecting Settlement Class Member will present to the Court in connection with the Final Approval Hearing; and (e) identify any witnesses that the Settlement Class Member intends to call. The document must be filed with the Court no later than April 12, 2023. You cannot speak at the hearing if you exclude yourself from the Settlement.

To be considered, you must file your Notice of Intention to Appear with the Court by mailing to the address below and postmarked no later than April 12, 2023:

Clerk of Court
One North Palafox St. 
Pensacola, Florida 32502

Attention: Brittaney Key, Inc., v. Miracle Faith Center, Inc. dba Apostolic Global Church, Case No. 3:22-cv-00075-TKW-MJF (N.D. Fla.)

Your Notice of Intention to Appear must also be mailed to the addresses below and postmarked no later than April 12, 2023.

The Notice is only a summary of the proposed Settlement. You can get a complete copy of the Settlement Agreement and Release and other material documents by visiting the Settlement Website, www.KeyTCPASettlement.com, or you can write to the Settlement Administrator at the address below or call the Toll-Free Settlement Hotline, (888) 828-8060.

DO NOT CALL OR WRITE TO THE COURT, THE CLERK OF THE COURT, DEFENDANT, OR DEFENDANT’S COUNSEL ABOUT THE SETTLEMENT. ALSO, TELEPHONE REPRESENTATIVES WHO ANSWER CALLS MADE TO THE TOLL-FREE NUMBER ARE NOT AUTHORIZED TO CHANGE THE TERMS OF THE SETTLEMENT OR THE NOTICE.