Cy Pres Awards

Bay Area Legal Services is eligible to receive nominations and awards for cy pres funding. 

Derived from a French phrase with meaning of “as near as possible,” cy pres awards are often designated when residual funds remain in a class action lawsuit. The resolution for residual funds that cannot be distributed to class members is the selection of a charitable organization that can help prevent similar lawsuits from occurring. 

Under the guidelines of a cy pres distribution, the courts approve a charitable organization as the beneficiary of the funds. Bay Area Legal Services is a nonprofit law firm whose objective is to help the most vulnerable members of our community. Regardless of the underlying issue in the class action lawsuit, our organization gives a voice to people who otherwise may not have been heard or represented.

If you, your firm, or someone you know is party to or counsel in a class action case involving a potential cy pres award, you can nominate Bay Area Legal Services as the recipient. Cy pres distributions assist in the life-changing work our attorneys provide to create pathways to justice for the low-income and marginalized communities we serve. For questions about cy pres, please contact our Development Team at development@bals.org.

In the News:

• $208K Cy Pres Award Will Benefit Bay Area Legal Services
• Bay Area Legal Services Experiences Record-Breaking Year for Cy Pres Awards

Thank you to those who obtained court approval and facilitated cy pres awards in recent years for Bay Area Legal Services. Cy pres awards below are listed in order of date received.

Tanya Fabregas v. Lifeworks Wellness Center LLC

Counsel: Rachel N. Dapeer, Dapeer Law
Case No. 23-CA-014579
Amount: $142.50
Date Received: 3/27/2025

Erica Heule v. Home Encounter LLC

Counsel: Jeffrey L. Newsome, Varnell & Warwick
Case No. 23-CA-014579
Amount: $49,770
Date Received: 3/12/2025

Guy Blessinger v. Wells Fargo & Co.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Amanda E. Heystek, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:22-CV-1029-TPB-SPF
Amount: $12,300
Date Received: 3/7/2025

Steven Arkin v. Smith Medical Partners, LLC consolidated with Pressman v. Smith Medical Partners, LLC

Counsel: Brian J. Wanca, Anderson + Wanca
Counsel: Phillip A. Bock, Bock Law Firm, LLC
Case No. 18CH000984 (Arkin v. Smith Medical Partners)
Case No. 19-cv-1723 (Pressman v. Smith Medical Partners)
Amount: $32,634.82
Date Received: 12/30/2024

Bastin Joseph v. Rizzetta & Co., Inc.

Counsel: Brian W. Warwick, Varnell & Warwick
Counsel: Jeffrey L. Newsome, Varnell & Warwick
Case No. 23-CA-001470
Amount: $53,600
Date Received: 10/18/2024

Sharley Bass v. Med-Call Healthcare, Inc. et al.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:22-cv-00244
Amount: $33,866.25
Date Received: 3/11/2024

Jessica Roubert v. Capital One Financial Corp.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:21-cv-2852-TPB-TGW
Amount: $72,073.49
Date Received: 2/12/2024

Heidi L. Gathen v. Cianfrone, Nikoloff, Grant & Greenberg, P.A.

Counsel: Jesse S. Johnson, Greenwald Davidson Radbil PLLC
Case No. 22-00284-CI
Amount: $7,118.90
Date Received: 1/16/2024

Lonita Johnson v. G4S Secure Solutions (USA) Inc.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 21-CA-005587
Amount: $22,375.06
Date Received: 1/9/2024

Venussa Boshoff v. O'Kelley & Sorohan, Attorneys at Law LLC

Counsel: Jesse S. Johnson, Greenwald Davidson Radbil PLLC
Case No. 22-00292
Amount: $6,818.30
Date Received: 12/12/2023

Douglas A. Denning v. Mankin Law Group, P.A.

Counsel: Jesse S. Johnson, Greenwald Davidson Radbil PLLC
Case No. 8:21-cv-2822
Amount: $5,762.25
Date Received: 11/7/2023

Ashley Johnson v. McDonald's Corporation

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 1:21-cv-24339-FAM
Amount: $34,995.69
Date Received: 10/17/2023

Pontillo v. Florida Health Sciences Center, Inc., d/b/a Tampa General Hospital

Counsel: Craig E. Rothburd, Craig E. Rothburd, P.A.
Case No. 22-CA-000099
Amount: $36,733.20
Date Received: 9/21/2023

Eric Jones v. Scribe Opco, Inc.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:20-cv-2945-T-33SPF
Amount: $21,961.74
Date Received: 8/18/2023

Logan Lyttle v. Trulieve, Inc.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:19-cv-02313-CEH-TGW
Amount: $1,919.47
Date Received: 6/14/2023

John G. Baja v. Costco Wholesale Corp.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 0:21-cv-61210
Amount: $208,230.66
Date Received: 4/18/2023
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Alex McNamara v. Brenntag Mid-South, Inc.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:21-cv-00618-MSS-JS
Amount: $11,543.32
Date Received: 2/16/2023

Brenda Lopez v. Ollie's Bargain Outlet

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 6:20-cv-02120
Amount: 1,046.07
Date Received: 1/6/2023

Michael Scantland, et al. v. Jeffry Knight, Inc. dba Knight Enterprises, Inc.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 12-12614
Amount: $364.11
Date Received: 3/7/2022

Rob Kaintz v. The Goodman Group, LLC

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Counsel: Chad A. Justice, Justice Litigation Associates
Case No. 8:20-cv-02115
Amount: $21,107.59
Date Received: 12/27/2021

Cliff Brown, et al. v. Kane Furniture Corporation

Counsel: J. Daniel Clark, Clark | Martino, P.A.
Case No. 15-CA-006875
Amount: $142,730.11
Date Received: 12/8/2021

Josh Twardosky v. Waste Management Inc. of Florida

Counsel: Brandon J. Hill, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No.  8:19-cv-2467-T-36TGW
Amount: $4,310.5
Date Received: 12/7/2021

Douglas Bauer v. St. Joseph’s Hospital, et al.

Counsel: Craig E. Rothburd, Craig E. Rothburd, P.A.
Case No. 19-CA-010837
Amount: $62,721
Date Received: 11/18/2021

Tamberly T. Brockman v. Mankin Law Group, P.A.

Counsel: Jesse S. Johnson, Greenwald Davidson Radbil PLLC
Case No. 8:20-cv-00893
Amount: $2,314.50
Date Received: 10/8/2021

Boyd v. Task Management Staffing

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:20-cv-780-T-35JSS
Amount: $81,518.09
Date Received: 8/13/2021

Leonard Curtis v. Atlas Law, PLLC

Counsel: Dale T. Golden, Golden Scaz Gagain, PLLC
Case No. 8:19-cv-01811
Amount: $596
Date Received: 8/5/2021

In Re Paradyne Networks Securities Litigation

Counsel: Daniel E. Bacine, Barrack, Rodos & Bacine
Counsel: Maya S. Saxena, Saxena White P.A.
Case No. 8:00-CV-2057-T-17TBM
Amount: $18,724.73
Date Received: 8/3/2021

Erica Silberstein v. Petsmart, Inc.

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:19-cv-0280
Amount: $112,651.35
Date Received: 5/13/2021

Brink-Wistar, et al. v. Raymond James & Associates Inc.

Counsel: Gary S. Betensky, Day Pitney LLP
Counsel: Manuel A. Garcia-Linares, Day Pitney LLP
Case No. 0:15-cv-60334
Amount: $36,180.15
Date Received: 5/3/2021

Shawn Rigney v. Target Corporation

Counsel: Luis A. Cabassa, Wenzel Fenton Cabassa, P.A.
Case No. 8:19-cv-01432-MSS-JSS
Amount: $386,529.96
Date Received: 4/6/2021

Bryan Hanley v. Tampa Bay Sports and Entertainment LLC

Counsel: Tori C. Simmons, Hill Ward Henderson
Counsel: Dennis P. Waggoner, Hill Ward Henderson
Case No. 8:19-CV-550-CEH-CPT
Amount: $18,800.81
Date Received: 1/27/2021