Frequently Asked Questions

No, you are not being sued.

This lawsuit is about alleged violations of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) by Giant Eagle, Inc.

Plaintiff claims that Defendants breached the fiduciary duties they owed to the participants in and beneficiaries of the Plan under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) by failing to have adequate procedures in place to ensure the Plan’s recordkeeping expenses were reasonable, and as to Giant Eagle, Inc., by failing to adequately monitor the other fiduciaries to ensure they were adequately performing their fiduciary obligations. Defendants deny all of the claims and allegations made in the Action and deny that they ever engaged in any wrongful conduct. If the Action were to continue, the Defendants would continue to assert numerous defenses to liability.

The Settlement Class has been preliminarily defined as follows:

All persons, who participated in the Plan at any time during the Class Period, including any Beneficiary of a deceased Person who participated in the Plan at any time during the Class Period, and any Alternate Payee of a Person subject to a QDRO who participated in the Plan at any time during the Class Period. Excluded from the Settlement Class are Defendants.

The “class period” referred to in this definition is from August 23, 2018 to July 23, 2025.

As in any litigation, all parties face an uncertain outcome. On the one hand, continuation of the case could result in a judgment greater than this Settlement. On the other hand, continuing the case could result in the Named Plaintiff and the class obtaining no recovery at all or obtaining a recovery that is less than the amount of the Settlement. Based on these factors, the Named Plaintiff and Class Counsel have concluded that the proposed Settlement is in the best interests of all Settlement Class members.

Provided that the Settlement becomes Final, a Settlement Fund consisting of $668,750.00 will be established in the Action. The amount of money that will be allocated among members of the Settlement Class, after the payment of any taxes and Court-approved costs, fees, and expenses, including attorneys’ fees and expenses of Class Counsel, any Court-approved Case Contribution Award to be paid to the Named Plaintiff, and payment of expenses incurred in calculating the Settlement payments and administering the Settlement, is called the Net Settlement Amount. The Net Settlement Amount will not be known until these other amounts are quantified and deducted. The Net Settlement Amount will be allocated to members of the Settlement Class according to a Plan of Allocation to be approved by the Court. The Plan of Allocation describes how the Net Settlement Amount will be distributed to Settlement Class members who receive a payment. If the Settlement is approved by the Court, all Settlement Class members and anyone claiming through them shall be deemed to fully release the Released Parties from Released Claims.

The Released Parties are (a) Defendants and any of Defendants’ employees, benefit plan fiduciaries, administrators, service providers, investment advisors and their respective affiliates or employees; (b) Defendants’ insurers, co-insurers, and reinsurers; (c) Defendants’ direct and indirect past, present, and future affiliates, parents, subsidiaries, divisions, joint ventures, predecessors, successors, Successors-In-Interest, assigns, boards of trustees, boards of directors, officers, trustees, directors, partners, agents, managers, members, or employees (including any individuals who serve or served in any of the foregoing capacities, such as members of the boards of trustees or boards of directors that are associated with any of Defendants’ past, present, and future affiliates), and each Person that controls, is controlled by, or is under common control with them; (d) for (a) through (c), their past, present and future agents, officers, employees, trustees, board of directors or trustees, members of the board of directors or trustees, independent contractors, representatives, attorneys, administrators, insurers, fiduciaries, accountants, auditors, advisors, personal representatives, spouses, heirs, executors, administrators, associates, employee benefit plans, employee benefit plan fiduciaries (with the exception of the Independent Fiduciary), employee benefit plan administrators, employee benefit plan committees and subcommittees and service providers (including their owners and employees), members of their immediate families, consultants, subcontractors, and all persons acting under, by, through, or in concert with any of them; and (e) the Plan and the Plan’s current and past fiduciaries, committees, subcommittees, administrators, plan administrators, recordkeepers, service providers, consultants, attorneys, agents, insurers, and parties-in-interest.

Released Claims are defined in the Settlement Agreement and include all claims that were or could have been asserted in the Action. This means, for example, that Settlement Class members will not have the right to sue the Released Parties for failure to prudently select and monitor the Plan’s fees or investment options, or related matters, that occurred during the Class Period.

The above description of the proposed Settlement is only a summary. The complete terms, including the definitions of the Released Parties and Released Claims, are set forth in the Settlement Agreement (including its exhibits), which may be found on this website.

You do not need to file a claim. The Entitlement Amount for Settlement Class members with an account balance greater than zero will be paid into the Plan. Former Participants will be paid directly by the Settlement Administrator by check.

All such payments are intended by the Settlement Class to be “restorative payments” in accordance with Internal Revenue Service Revenue Ruling 2002-45. Checks issued to Former Participants pursuant to this paragraph shall be valid for 180 days from the date of issue. If you are a former Plan participant and have not provided the Plan with your current address, please contact the Settlement Administrator at the toll-free number listed on this website.

Each Class Member who receives a payment under this Settlement Agreement shall be fully and ultimately responsible for payment of any and all federal, state, or local taxes resulting from or attributable to the payment received by such person.

The Court has preliminarily appointed the law firms of Muhic Law LLC and Wade Kilpela Slade LLP as Class Counsel in the Action. You will not be charged directly by these lawyers. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

You do not have the right to exclude yourself from the Settlement. The Settlement Agreement provides for certification of the Settlement Class as a non-opt-out class action under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(b)(1), and the Court has preliminarily determined that the requirements of that rule have been satisfied. Thus, it is not possible for any Settlement Class members to exclude themselves from the Settlement. As a Settlement Class member, you will be bound by any judgments or orders that are entered in the Action for all claims that were or could have been asserted in the Action or are otherwise released under the Settlement.

Although you cannot opt out of the Settlement, you can object to the Settlement and ask the Court not to approve it. For more information on how to object to the Settlement, see below.

If you are a Settlement Class Member, you can object to the Settlement if you do not like any part of it. You can give reasons why you think the Court should not approve it. To object, you must send a letter or other writing saying that you object to the Settlement in Kehrer v. Giant Eagle, Inc. et al., Civil Action No. 2:24-cv-01211. Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, signature, and a full explanation of all the reasons why you object to the Settlement.

You must file your objection with the Clerk of the Court of United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania so that it is received no later than October 21, 2025.

The address is:

United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
700 Grant Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15219

The objection must refer prominently to this case name: Kehrer v. Giant Eagle, Inc. et al., Civil Action No. 2:24-cv-01211.

A copy of your objection must also be provided to Class Counsel and Defense Counsel at the following addresses:

Class Counsel:
Edwin J. Kilpela, Jr.
Wade Kilpela Slade LLP
6425 Living Place, Suite 200
Pittsburgh, PA 15206

Peter A. Muhic
Muhic Law LLC
923 Haddonfield Rd, Suite 300
Cherry Hill, NJ 08002

Defense Counsel:
Jeremy P. Blumenfeld
Morgan, Lewis & Bockius LLP
2222 Market Street
Philadelphia, PA 19103

The Court will hold a Fairness Hearing to decide whether to approve the Settlement as fair, reasonable, and adequate. You may participate in the Fairness Hearing and you may ask to speak if you have timely asserted an objection, but you do not have to participate in the Fairness Hearing to have your objection considered. It is your obligation to ensure that your written objection is received by the Court by no later than October 21, 2025.

The Fairness Hearing currently is scheduled for 1:30 p.m., on November 20, 2025, at the United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, 700 Grant Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15219, in such courtroom as the Court may designate.

The Court may adjourn the Fairness Hearing without further notice to the Settlement Class and also may schedule the hearing to be done by telephone or video conference. If you wish to attend, you should confirm the date and time of the Fairness Hearing with the Settlement Administrator before doing so. At that hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate. If there are objections, the Court will consider them. The Court will also rule on the motions for attorneys’ fees and reimbursement of expenses and for Case Contribution Award for the Named Plaintiff. The Parties do not know how long these decisions will take or whether appeals will be filed.

You do not have to come to the hearing, but you are welcome to come at your own expense. If you file an objection, you do not have to come to Court to talk about it. As long as you mailed your written objection on time, it will be before the Court when the Court considers whether to approve the Settlement. You also may pay your own lawyer to attend the Fairness Hearing, but such attendance is also not necessary.

You may contact the Settlement Administrator at GiantEagleERISA@noticeadministrator.com.