IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF ILLINOIS

SABRINA BEDFORD,

Plaintiff,

v.

LIFESPACE COMMUNITIES, INC.,

Defendant.

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Case No. 1:20-cv-04574

Hon. Manish S. Shah

ORDER CERTIFYING CLASS FOR SETTLEMENT PURPOSES ONLY AND

GRANTING PRELIMINARY APPROVAL OF CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT

The Court has considered Plaintiff’s Unopposed Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class 

Action Settlement. The Court has reviewed the Settlement Agreement and its exhibits, including 

the Notice of Proposed Settlement of Class Action Lawsuit (“Class Notice”), along with the 

submissions of counsel, and hereby finds and orders as follows:

1. Unless otherwise defined herein, all capitalized terms used in this Order (the 

“Preliminary Approval Order”) will have the same meaning as defined in the Settlement 

Agreement.

2. The Court finds on a preliminary basis that the Settlement memorialized in the 

Settlement Agreement, and filed with the Court, falls within the range of reasonableness and, 

therefore, meets the requirements for preliminary approval.

3. This Court grants preliminary approval of the Parties’ Class Action Settlement.

4. This Court finds that the proposed Settlement Class is proper and should be 

certified. For purposes of the proposed Settlement, the Settlement Class is certified pursuant to 

Fed. R. Civ. P. 23 as follows:

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All individuals working for Defendant Lifespace Communities, Inc. (“Defendant” 

or “Lifespace”) in the State of Illinois who had any information that allegedly could 

be covered under the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, 740 ILCS 14/1, 

et seq., collected, captured, received, obtained, maintained, stored, transmitted, or 

disclosed by any Defendant within the five-year period preceding the date the 

Complaint was filed through February 1, 2021 and who do not timely opt-out of 

the settlement (“Settlement Class”).

5. This Court specifically finds for purposes of this settlement that (i) the class is so 

numerous that joinder is impracticable; (ii) common questions of fact and law exist; (iii) Plaintiff’s 

claims are typical of the class claims; and (iv) Plaintiff will be able to fairly and adequately protect 

the interests of the Settlement Class. In addition, this Court finds for purposes of this Settlement 

that common questions of fact and law predominate over questions affecting individual Class 

Members, and the class action is superior to other available methods of adjudication. Certification 

of the Settlement Class for settlement purposes is the best means for protecting the interests of all 

Settlement Class Members.

6. This Court appoints the attorneys from Stephan Zouras, LLP as Class Counsel and 

Named Plaintiff Sabrina Bedford as Class Representative.

7. This Court approves Simpluris as Settlement Administrator to perform duties in 

accordance with the terms of the Settlement Agreement and the plan of settlement administration 

therein.

8. The Class Notice to be provided as set forth in the Settlement Agreement is hereby 

found to be the best practicable means of providing notice under the circumstances and, when 

completed, shall constitute due and sufficient notice of the proposed Settlement and of the Final 

Approval Hearing to all persons and entities affected by and/or entitled to participate in the 

Settlement, in full compliance with the notice requirements of Fed. R. Civ. P. 23, due process, the 

Constitution of the United States, the laws of the State of Illinois, and all other applicable laws. 

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The Class Notice is accurate, objective, and informative and provides members of the Settlement 

Class with all of the information necessary to make an informed decision regarding their 

participation in the Settlement and its fairness.

9. The Class Notice, attached to this Order as Exhibit A, is approved. The Settlement 

Administrator is authorized to mail those documents to the Class Members as provided in the 

Settlement Agreement.

10. Any written objection to the Settlement must be submitted to the Court no later than 

forty-five (45) days after the Class Notice is mailed to the Class Members.

11. Any uncashed amounts from the Settlement Fund (including checks disbursed to 

Settlement Class Members that are uncashed for any reason within 120 days of issuance of the 

check) will be retained by Defendant or its insurer, as set forth in the Settlement Agreement.

12. This Court preliminarily approves the Fee Award to Class Counsel of $351,094.00 

of the Settlement Fund, inclusive of all past and anticipated future attorneys’ fees, which represents 

33.3% of the Settlement Fund, inclusive of administrative costs and attorney expenses not to 

exceed $22,140.00.

13. The deadline for filing any fee petition shall be 50 days following the entry of this 

Order. The deadline for class members to object to any fee petition submitted shall be 60 days 

following the entry of this Order, or 10 days after the submission of any fee petition.

14. In the event that the Effective Date does not occur, the Settlement and the 

Settlement Agreement shall be deemed null and void and shall have no effect whatsoever. In such 

case, nothing in the Settlement Agreement or this Order shall be relied upon, cited as, constitute 

evidence of, or constitute an admission that class or collective action certification is or may be 

appropriate in this action or any other matter, as set forth in the Settlement Agreement.

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15. The Court will conduct a Final Approval Hearing on May 12, 2021, at 10:00 a.m.

to determine the overall fairness of the Settlement. The Final Approval Hearing may be continued 

without further notice to Class Members. The Class Representative shall file a motion for approval 

of the Settlement, and Class Counsel shall file their unopposed motion for a Fee Award, 

Administration Expenses, and the Service Award to the Class Representative on or before May 5, 

2021.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

 Dated: February 5, 2021

Hon. Manish S. Shah

United States District Court Judge

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EXHIBIT A

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NOTICE OF PROPOSED CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT

Bedford v. Lifespace Communities, Inc., Case No. 20-cv-04574

United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division

PLEASE READ THIS NOTICE CAREFULLY. YOU MAY BE ENTITLED TO A 

CASH PAYMENT FROM A CLASS ACTION SETTLEMENT IF YOU PROVIDED 

YOUR HAND OR FINGER SCAN FOR EMPLOYEE TIMEKEEPING BY 

LIFESPACE COMMUNITIES, INC. AT ANY TIME BETWEEN JUNE 17, 2015 TO 

[DATE OF PRELIMINARY APPROVAL].

This is a court-authorized notice of a proposed class action settlement. This is not a

solicitation from a lawyer and is not notice of a lawsuit against you.

WHY DID I GET THIS NOTICE?

This is a court-authorized notice of a proposed Settlement in a class action lawsuit, Bedford 

v. Lifespace Communities, Inc., Case No. 20-cv-04574, pending in the United States District

Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division. The Settlement would resolve a 

lawsuit brought on behalf of persons who allege that Lifespace Communities, Inc.

(collectively, “Lifespace” or “Defendant”) required workers to provide their biometric 

identifier and/or biometric information for timekeeping without first providing them with 

legally-required written disclosures and obtaining written consent. Defendant contests these

claims and deny that they violated the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act. If you 

received this Notice, you have been identified as a member of the Settlement Class. The 

Court has granted preliminary approval of the Settlement and has conditionally certified the

Settlement Classfor purposes of Settlement only. This Notice explains the nature of the class 

action lawsuit, the terms of the Settlement, and the legal rights and obligations of the 

Settlement Class Members. Please read the instructions and explanations below so that you 

can better understand your legal rights.

WHAT IS THIS LAWSUIT ABOUT?

The Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (“BIPA”), 740 ILCS 14/1, et seq., prohibits 

private companies from capturing, obtaining,storing, transferring, and/or using the biometric

identifiers and/or information, such as fingerprints, of another individual for any purpose, 

including timekeeping, without first providing such individual with certain written 

disclosures and obtaining written consent. Thislawsuit allegesthat Defendant violated BIPA

by requiring current and former workers to submit their hand or finger scan between June 17, 

2015 and [DATE OF PRELIMINARY APPROVAL] without first providing the requisite 

disclosures or obtaining the requisite consent. Defendants contest these claims and deny that 

they violated BIPA.

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WHY IS THIS A CLASS ACTION?

A class action is a lawsuit in which an individual called a “Class Representative” brings a 

single lawsuit on behalf of other people who have similar claims. All of these people together

are a “Class” or “Class Members.” Once a Class is certified, a class action Settlement finally

approved by the Court resolves the issues for all Settlement Class Members, except for those 

who exclude themselves from the SettlementClass.

WHY IS THERE A SETTLEMENT?

To resolve this matter without the expense, delay, and uncertainties of litigation, the Parties

have reached a Settlement, which resolves all claims against Defendant. The Settlement 

requires Defendant to pay money to the Settlement Class, as well as pay settlement 

administration expenses, attorneys’ fees and costs to Class Counsel, and an incentive award 

to the Class Representative, if approved by the Court. The Settlement is not an admission

of wrongdoing by Defendants and does not imply that there has been, or would be, any 

finding that Defendants violated the law.

The Court has already preliminarily approved the Settlement. Nevertheless, because the 

settlement of a class action determines the rights of all members of the class, the Court

overseeing this lawsuit must give final approval to the Settlement before it can be effective. 

The Court has conditionally certified the Settlement Class for settlement purposes only, so 

that members of the Settlement Class can be given this Notice and the opportunity to exclude 

themselves from the Settlement Class, and to voice their support or opposition to final 

approval of the Settlement. If the Court does not give final approval to the Settlement, or if 

it is terminated by the Parties, the Settlement will be void, and the lawsuit will proceed as if 

there had been no settlement and no certification of the SettlementClass.

WHO IS IN THE SETTLEMENT CLASS?

You are a member of the Settlement Class if, at any time between June 17, 2015 and (1) 

[DATE OF PRELIMINARY APPROVAL], and you performed work for any Defendant in 

the State of Illinois and had any information that allegedly could be covered under BIPA 

collected, captured, received, obtained, maintained, stored, transmitted, or disclosed by any

Defendant. You will be considered a member of the Settlement Class unless you properly 

execute and file a timely request for exclusion from the Class as explained below.

WHAT ARE MY OPTIONS?

(1) Accept the Settlement.

To accept the Settlement, you do not need to do anything. If you are receiving this Notice, 

you are currently considered a member of the Settlement Class and will continue to be unless 

you exclude yourself from the Settlement.

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(2) Exclude yourself.

You may exclude yourself from the Settlement. If you do so, you will not receive any cash

payment, but you will not release any claims you may have against Defendants and the other 

Released Parties (as that term is defined in the Settlement Agreement) and are free to pursue 

whatever legal rights you may have by filing your own lawsuit against Defendants at your 

own risk and expense. To exclude yourself from the Settlement, you must send a written 

request for exclusion to the Settlement Administrator providing your name, address, and 

telephone number; the name and number of this case; a statement that you wish to be 

excluded from the Settlement Class; and your signature, postmarked by [45 days after entry 

of class certification] to Simpluris. A request to be excluded that is sent to an address other 

than that designated in this Notice, or that is not postmarked within the time specified, shall 

be invalid and you shall be considered a member of the Settlement Class and shall be bound 

as a Settlement Class Members by the Settlement Agreement, if approved by theCourt.

(3) Object to the Settlement.

If you wish to object to the Settlement, you must submit your objection in writing to the 

Clerk of the United States District Court Northern District of Illinois Everett McKinley 

Dirksen United States Courthouse 219 S. Dearborn Street Chicago, IL 60604, specifying 

Bedford v. Lifespace Communities, Inc., Case No. 20-cv-04574. The objection must be 

received by the Court no later than [45 days after class certification].

If you wish to object to the Attorneys’ Fees sought in this case, you must submit your 

objection in writing to the Clerk of the United States District Court Northern District of 

Illinois Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse 219 S. Dearborn Street 

Chicago, IL 60604, specifying Bedford v. Lifespace Communities, Inc., Case No. 20-cv04574. The objection must be received by the Court no later than [60 days after class 

certification].

You must also send a copy of your objection to the settlement and/or attorneys’ fees to the 

attorneys for all Parties to the lawsuit, including Class Counsel (address below), as well as 

the attorneys representing Defendants (Josh M. Kanthrow, Lewis Brisbois, 550 West Adams 

Street, Suite 300, Chicago, Illinois 60661), postmarked no later than [45 days after class 

certification] for objections to the settlement and [60 days after class certification] for 

objections to attorneys’ fees. Any objection to the proposed Settlement must include your (i)

full name, address, and telephone number; (ii) the case name and number of this lawsuit; (iii) 

the date range during which you were employed by Defendant; (iv) all grounds for the

objection, with factual and legal support for the stated objection, including any supporting

materials; (v) the identification of any other objections you have filed, or have had filed on 

your behalf, in any other class action cases in the last four years; and (vi) your signature. If 

you hire an attorney in connection with making an objection, that attorney must also file 

with the Court a notice of appearance by the objection deadline of [45 days after class 

certification] for objections to the settlement and [60 days after class certification] for 

objections to attorneys’ fees. If you do hire your own attorney, you will be solely responsible 

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for payment of any fees and expenses the attorney incurs on your behalf. If you exclude

yourself from the Settlement, you cannot file anobjection.

You may appear at the Final Approval Hearing, which to be held on [FINAL HEARING 

DATE AND TIME], in the Court’s discretion via telephone, videoconference, or in 

Courtroom 2341 of the Everett McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, 219 S. 

Dearborn St., Chicago, Illinois 60604 in person or through counsel to show cause of why the 

proposed Settlement should not be approved as fair, reasonable, and adequate. Attendance 

at the hearing is not necessary; however, persons wishing to be heard orally in opposition to 

the approval of the Settlement, the request for attorneys’ fees and expenses, and/or the 

request for an incentive award to the Class Representative are required to indicate in their 

written objection their intention to appear at the hearing on their own behalf or through 

counsel and to identify the names of any witnesses they intend to call to testify at the Final 

Approval Hearing, as well as any exhibits they intend to introduce at the Final Approval 

Hearing.

WHAT DOES THE SETTLEMENT PROVIDE?

Cash Payments. Defendant has agreed to create a Settlement Fund for the Class Members in

the amount of $987,850.00. All Settlement Class Members are entitled to receive a payment

out of the Settlement Fund. If the Settlement is approved, each Settlement Class Member will 

be entitled to a payment of approximately $1,150.00 out of the Settlement Fund, less 

deductions for settlement administration costs, attorneys’ fees, and a service award to the 

Class Representative, or approximately $726.30. The Settlement Administrator will issue a

check to each Class Member following the final approval of the Settlement. All checks issued

to Settlement Class Members will expire and become void 120 days after they are issued. 

Additionally, the attorneys who brought this lawsuit (listed below) will ask the Court to award 

them attorneys’ fees of up to 33.3% of the Settlement Fund, plus reasonable costs, for the 

substantial time, expense and effort expended in investigating the facts, litigating the case and 

negotiating the Settlement. The Class Representative also will apply to the Court for a 

payment of up to $10,000.00 (in total) for her time, effort, and service to the Class in this 

matter.

WHAT RIGHTS AM I GIVING UP IN THIS SETTLEMENT?

Unless you exclude yourself from this Settlement, you will be considered a member of the 

Settlement Class, which means you give up your right to file or continue a lawsuit for all

claimsrelating to the Released Parties which relate to or arise out of Lifespace in Illinois, and 

which relate in any way to information that is or could be protected under the Illinois 

Biometric Information Privacy Act, 740 ILCS 14/1 et seq., or any other similar state, local,

or federal law, regulation, or ordinance, or common law. Giving up your legal claimsis called

a release. The precise terms ofthe release are in the Settlement Agreement, which is available

upon request. Unless you formally exclude yourself from this Settlement, you will release

your claims. If you have any questions, you can talk for free to the attorneys identified below 

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who have been appointed by the Court to represent the Settlement Class, or you are welcome 

to talk to any other lawyer of your choosing at your own expense.

WHEN WILL I BE PAID?

The Parties cannot predict exactly when (or whether) the Court will give final approval to the

Settlement,so please be patient. However, if the Court finally approves the Settlement, you 

will be paid as soon as possible after the court order becomes final, which should occur

within approximately 30 days after the Settlement has been finally approved. If there is an

appeal of the Settlement, payment may be delayed. Updated information about the case can 

be obtained through Class Counsel at the information provided below.

WHEN WILL THE COURT RULE ON THE SETTLEMENT?

The Court has already given preliminary approval to the Settlement. A final hearing on the 

Settlement, called a Final Approval Hearing, will be held to determine the fairness of the 

Settlement. At the Final Approval Hearing, the Court will also consider whether to make 

final the certification of the Class for settlement purposes, hear any proper objections and 

arguments to the Settlement, as well as any requests for an award of attorneys’ fees, costs, 

and expenses and Class Representative service award that may be sought by Class Counsel. 

The Court will hold the Final Approval Hearing on [FINAL APPROVAL DATE / TIME]

in the Court’s discretion via telephone, videoconference, or in Courtroom 2341 of the Everett 

McKinley Dirksen United States Courthouse, 219 S. Dearborn St., Chicago, Illinois 60604.

If the Settlement is given final approval, the Court will not make any determination as to the 

merits of the claims against Defendant or its defenses to those claims. Instead, the

Settlement’s terms will take effect and the lawsuit will be dismissed on the merits with 

prejudice. Both sides have agreed to the Settlement in order to achieve an early and certain 

resolution to the lawsuit, in a manner that provides specific and valuable benefits to the 

members of the SettlementClass.

If the Court does not approve the Settlement, if it approves the Settlement and the approval 

is reversed on appeal, or if the Settlement does not become final for some other reason, you 

will not be paid at this time and Class Members will receive no benefits from the Settlement. 

Plaintiff, Defendants, and all of the Class Members will be in the same position as they were 

prior to the execution of the Settlement, and the Settlement will have no legal effect, no class 

will remain certified (conditionally or otherwise), and the Plaintiff and Defendant will

continue to litigate the lawsuit. There can be no assurance that if the Settlement is not 

approved, the Settlement Class will recover more than is provided in the Settlement, or 

indeed, anything at all.

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WHO REPRESENTS THE CLASS?

The Court has approved the following attorneys to represent the Settlement Class. They are 

called “Class Counsel.” You will not be charged for these lawyers. If you want to be 

represented by your own lawyer instead, you may hire one at your own expense.

James B. Zouras

Ryan F. Stephan

Anna M. Ceragioli

Stephan Zouras, LLP

100 N. Riverside Plaza, Suite 2150

Chicago, Illinois 60606

312.233.1550

312.233.1560 f

lawyers@stephanzouras.com

WHERE CAN I GET ADDITIONAL INFORMATION?

This Notice is only a summary of the proposed Settlement of thislawsuit. More details are in

the Settlement Agreement which, along with other documents, can be obtained by contacting

Class Counsel. If you have any questions, you can also call Class Counsel at the numbers or

email addresses set forth above. In addition to all pleadings and documents filed in court may

be reviewed or copied in the Office of the Clerk. Please do not call the Judge or the Clerk of 

the Court about this case. They will not be able to give you advice on your options.

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