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Illinois residents who have or had a personal checking account with Morton Community Bank and whom the bank charged certain overdraft or nonsufficient funds fees between April 11, 2014, and Aug. 31, 2022, may be eligible to receive a cash payment or account credit from a class action settlement.
Morton Community Bank agreed to pay $238,000 to resolve a class action lawsuit alleging it improperly assessed certain overdraft and NSF fees on personal checking accounts.
Who are the class members?
Class members must meet all of the following criteria:
- They are an Illinois citizen.
- They have or had a personal checking account with Morton Community Bank.
- Morton Community Bank assessed one or more retry fees on their account between April 11, 2014, and Aug. 31, 2022.
A “retry fee” is defined as a fee Morton Community Bank charged on an item that a merchant returned for insufficient funds so it assessed an NSF fee, the merchant re-presented and then it assessed an additional NSF fee or overdraft fee.
If an individual received a notice from Morton Community Bank regarding this settlement, its records indicate they are likely a class member.
How much can class members get?
The total settlement fund is $238,000. After deducting attorneys’ fees, litigation costs, service awards for the class representative and administration expenses, the settlement administrator will distribute the remaining amount to class members on a proportional (pro rata) basis.
Here’s how the payment calculation works:
- The settlement administrator will divide the net settlement fund by the total number of retry fees all class members paid, resulting in a per-fee amount.
- It will then multiply by the number of retry fees the class member paid by the per-fee amount to determine their payment.
If any funds remain due to uncashed checks after 120 days, the settlement administrator may issue a second distribution if the average amount per class member exceeds $5. Otherwise, it will donate the remaining funds to Land of Lincoln Legal Aid.
No action needed to receive compensation
Class members do not need to submit a claim form or take any action to receive their payment or account credit. The settlement administrator will automatically issue payments based on Morton Community Bank’s records.
- Current account holders will receive a credit directly to their account.
- Former account holders will receive a check mailed to their last known address.
Class members whose addresses changed should contact the settlement administrator to update their information.
Settlement administrator’s mailing address: Williams v. Morton Community Bank, c/o Settlement Administrator, P.O. Box 301130, Los Angeles, CA 90030-1130
$238,000 settlement fund breakdown
The $238,000 settlement fund covers:
- Settlement administration costs: $38,702 (estimated)
- Attorneys’ fees: Up to $79,333
- Attorneys’ expenses: To be determined
- Service awards to class representative: Up to $5,000
- Payments to eligible class members: The remainder of the fund
Important dates
- Deadline to opt out: April 9, 2026
- Fairness hearing: June 10, 2026
When is the Williams v. Morton Community Bank payout date?
The settlement administrator will distribute payments within 70 days after the court resolves any appeals and grants final approval to the settlement.
Why did this class action settlement happen?
The class action lawsuit alleged the bank improperly assessed overdraft and NSF fees on items merchants re-presented after they returned for insufficient funds. The plaintiffs claimed this practice violated the account agreement and Illinois law, including breach of contract, breach of the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing, unjust enrichment and the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act.
Morton Community Bank denied wrongdoing but agreed to settle to avoid the expense and uncertainty of litigation.
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