Frequency Asked Questions

You received this Notice because the Court has ruled that the Lawsuit may be maintained as a class action for monetary relief and because All Star’s records show that you are a potential member of the Class described below. This Notice is intended to generally describe the nature of the Lawsuit and your legal rights and obligations.

The Court in charge of the Lawsuit is the United States District Court for the District of Maryland, and the Lawsuit is known as Wilson, Jr., et al., v. Eagle National Bank, et al., Civil Action No.: 8:20-cv-01344-JRR

The Plaintiffs in the lawsuit are John and Jackie Unthank and Sam Wilson, Jr. These Plaintiffs allege that ESSA Bancorp Inc. and ESSA Bank & Trust (collectively, the “ESSA” Defendants) are the successors in interest to Eagle National Bancorp Inc., Eagle National Bank and Eagle Nationwide Mortgage Company (collectively, the “Eagle Defendants”). Plaintiffs in the Lawsuit allege that between 1/1/09 and 12/31/11, All Star provided certain unlawful benefits to Eagle Defendants’ employees and/or agents in exchange for their agreement to refer borrowers to All Star for the settlement of their residential mortgage loans with the Eagle Defendants. Plaintiffs also allege that the Eagle Defendants and All Star entered price fixing agreements to charge borrowers unnecessarily high and fraudulent title and settlement services charges on loans and fraudulently concealed the alleged kickback scheme. Plaintiffs seek to recover money damages for each borrower affected by the Eagle Defendants’ alleged conduct pursuant to 12 U.S.C. §2607(d)(2) and 15 U.S.C. §15(a). The Eagle and ESSA Defendants deny the allegations in the Lawsuit, deny that Plaintiffs were overcharged for the services they received, and deny that they are or may be liable for any of the claims asserted or for the conduct of those employees and/or agents who allegedly accepted benefits from All Star. The Court has not yet made any judgment or other determination of the liability of the Eagle or ESSA Defendants in the Lawsuit.

In a class action lawsuit, one or more people called Plaintiffs sue on behalf of others who may have similar claims. For a case to proceed as a class action, a court must certify a class. That is what has happened in this case. This ruling by the Court of a class action does not mean that any monetary relief will be obtained for the class members because these are contested issues that have not been decided. Rather, the ruling means that the final outcome of this lawsuit, whether favorable to Plaintiffs or Defendant(s), will apply in like manner to every member of the class who does not timely elect to be excluded from the class.

The Court has decided that everyone who fits this description is an Eagle Class Member: All individuals in the United States who were borrowers on a loan originated or brokered by Eagle National Bank or Eagle Nationwide Mortgage Company for which All Star Title, Inc. provided a settlement service, as identified in Section 1100 on the borrower’s HUD-1, between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2011. Exempted from this class is any person who, during the period of January 1, 2009 through December 31, 2011, was an employee, officer, member and/or agent of Defendants Eagle National Bank, Eagle Nationwide Mortgage Company, Eagle National Bancorp Inc., ESSA Bank & Trust, Inc., ESSA Bancorp Inc., or All Star Title, Inc.; and any judicial officer who handles this case, and the immediate family members of such judicial officer(s).

The Antitrust Subclass is comprised of all members of the Eagle Class.

The RESPA Subclass is comprised of all individuals in the United States who were borrowers on a federally related mortgage loan (as defined under the Real Estate Settlement Procedures Act, 12 U.S.C. § 2602) originated or brokered by Eagle National Bank or Eagle Nationwide Mortgage Company for which All Star Title, Inc. provided a settlement service, as identified in Section 1100 on the borrower’s HUD-1, between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2011. If your name appears on this Notice, then certain loan records indicate that you are likely a member of the Eagle Class and one or both Subclasses.

The Eagle Class is represented by Class Representatives, who are Plaintiffs in the Lawsuit. The court-appointed Eagle Class and Subclasses Representatives are: John and Jackie Unthank and Sam Wilson, Jr.

The Court has also appointed Plaintiffs’ Counsel to serve as Class Counsel for the Eagle Class and Subclasses. Class Counsel for the Eagle Class and Subclasses are: Michael Paul Smith and Melissa L. English of the law firm, Smith, Gildea & Schmidt, LLC, and Timothy F. Maloney and Veronica B. Nannis of the law firm, Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A.

If you desire, you may also appear by your own attorney at your own expense. You may also seek to intervene individually and may advise the Court if at any time you consider that you are not being fairly and adequately represented by Plaintiffs and Class Counsel.

If you wish to remain a member of the Eagle Class, you do not have to do anything. By remaining an Eagle Class and Subclass member, any claims against the Eagle or ESSA Defendants for monetary relief arising from the Eagle Defendants’ conduct as alleged by the Plaintiffs will be determined in this case and cannot be presented in any other lawsuit. Your participation in any recovery, through trial or settlement, will depend on the results of this lawsuit. If no recovery is obtained for the Eagle Class and Subclasses, you will be bound by that result also.

You may be required as a condition of participation in any recovery through settlement or trial to present evidence respecting your membership in the Eagle Class and Subclasses, and the monetary relief to which you might be entitled. You should, therefore, collect and preserve documents related to your mortgage transaction(s) with the Eagle Defendants. If you have evidence you believe would be helpful to Counsel, you may communicate with Class Counsel regarding that evidence.

You will be entitled to notice of any ruling reducing the size of the Eagle Class and Subclasses in which you are a member and also to notice of, and an opportunity to be heard respecting, any proposed settlement or dismissal of the class claims. For this reason, as well as to participate in any recovery, you are requested to notify Class Counsel of any corrections or changes in your name or address.

Any member of the Eagle Class and/or Subclasses has the right to opt-out or exclude themselves from the Eagle Class and Subclasses by sending a written Request for Exclusion from the Eagle Class to the Notice Administrator at the following address:

Notice Administrator
Eagle – All Star Class Action Litigation
The Casey Group, Ltd
PO Box 201
Lightfoot, VA 23090-0201

To be excluded from the Class, the Class Member must complete an Exclusion Request, sign the Exclusion Request, and mail the Exclusion Request to the Notice Administrator no later than the Exclusion Deadline of June 20, 2023. A separate request for exclusion should be completed and timely mailed for each person or entity electing to be excluded from the Eagle Class and Subclasses. Co-borrowers on a loan must both submit a valid, timely request for exclusion to be excluded from the Eagle Class.

If you submit a timely and valid Request for Exclusion from the Eagle Class, you will not be a part of the Eagle Class (or Subclass), will not be eligible to participate in the Lawsuit, will not be bound by any result obtained from this Lawsuit whether or not obtained in favor of Plaintiffs, and will not be precluded from legally pursuing the Eagle or ESSA Defendants in an individual capacity.

You will not share in any recovery that might be paid to Eagle Class and Subclass members as a result of trial or settlement of this lawsuit.

You will not be bound by any decision in this lawsuit favorable to the Eagle or ESSA Defendants.

You may present any claims you have against the Eagle or ESSA Defendants related to the Eagle Defendants’ conduct by filing your own lawsuit, or you may seek to intervene in this lawsuit.

If you have questions concerning the Lawsuit, including any corrections or changes of name or address, you should not contact the Court, but should contact, in writing, Class Counsel at:

Class Counsel
Eagle – All Star Class Action Litigation
600 Washington Avenue, Suite 200
Towson, MD 21204.

If you decide to remain a member of the Class and wish to communicate with Class Counsel as your attorney in this litigation, you may do so by writing or calling the following:

Michael Paul Smith, Esq. (Email: [email protected])
Melissa L. English, Esq. (Email: [email protected])
Smith, Gildea & Schmidt, LLC
600 Washington Avenue, Suite 200, Towson, MD 21204
telephone: (410) 821-0070

Timothy F. Maloney, Esq. (Email: [email protected])
Veronica B. Nannis, Esq. (Email: [email protected])
Joseph, Greenwald & Laake, P.A.
6404 Ivy Lane, Suite 400, Greenbelt, MD 20770
telephone: (301)220-2200