The Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management settlement resolved a Washington class action alleging that a group of affiliated food service companies posted jobs without the salary ranges and benefits information state law requires. The deal established a settlement fund between $795,147.25 and $1,261,000, with individual payments estimated at $672.76 and capped at $5,000. The claims process is now closed.{1ClaimDepot. Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement}
Who Qualified as a Class Member
The class covered anyone who applied for a job in Washington with any of the defendant companies between January 1, 2023, and June 12, 2025, where the posting failed to disclose the required wage or salary information or a general description of benefits and compensation.{2Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Settlement} Whether the applicant was hired did not matter. Submitting an application to a noncompliant posting was enough.
What Class Members Could Receive
Eligible members who filed a timely claim were entitled to an equal share of the net settlement fund. The estimated per-person payment was $672.76, and the maximum any one class member could receive was $5,000, with the actual figure driven by how many valid claims came in.{3CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice}
The fund was reduced by several deductions before distribution. Class counsel could receive up to $371,995 in fees and up to $2,000 in litigation costs, and the two named plaintiffs, Christopher Hopkins and Craig Metcalf, were each eligible for a $10,000 service award.{3CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice}{1ClaimDepot. Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement}
Payments are reported as non-wage damages and interest on a Form 1099-MISC. Settlement checks expire 181 days after issuance. Participating in the settlement releases class members’ related claims against the defendants under Washington’s pay transparency law.{1ClaimDepot. Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement}{5CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice
Key Dates and Current Status
The Pierce County Superior Court granted preliminary approval on August 20, 2025.{4Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Settlement} November 17, 2025 was the deadline to submit a claim, request exclusion, or file an objection. Claims could be filed online or by mail through CPT Group, Inc., the settlement administrator based in Irvine, California.{3CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice}
Judge Blinn held the final approval hearing on January 16, 2026, in Department 8 of the Pierce County Superior Court, and the court granted final approval of the settlement.{6Trellis Law. Christopher Hopkins vs. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC} The claims process is closed, so new claims can no longer be submitted.{1ClaimDepot. Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement}
What the Lawsuit Alleged
Christopher Hopkins and Craig Metcalf filed the case in Pierce County Superior Court as Case No. 25-2-07342-0.{2Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Settlement} It consolidated separate lawsuits filed against the different defendant entities into a single action.{3CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice}
The complaint alleged the defendants posted Washington job openings without the wage scale or salary range for the position and without a general description of benefits and other compensation, in violation of RCW 49.58.110. That provision is part of Washington’s Equal Pay and Opportunities Act and has required disclosure since January 1, 2023.{2Aladdin Food Mgmt Settlement. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Settlement} The defendants denied wrongdoing and maintained their postings complied with the law.{3CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice}
Which Companies Were Sued
The defendants were a cluster of related food service companies: Aladdin Food Management, LLC; Elior, Inc.; Lancer Food and Beverage, LLC; Lancer Food Holdings LLC (doing business as Lancer Hospitality); Aladdin Food Management Services, LLC (doing business as Lexington Independents); and Summit Food Service, LLC.{3CPT Group, Inc. Hopkins v. Aladdin Food Management Services LLC Class Notice} These entities sit within Elior North America, which provides dining services to colleges and universities, K-12 schools, healthcare facilities, and corporate campuses.{7OysterLink. Elior North America – Aladdin Food Management}
Why This Case Fits a Larger Pattern
Hopkins is one of more than 200 class actions filed in Washington since the pay transparency rule took effect in January 2023, with total potential liability across those cases estimated above $500 million.{8IADC. Washington State Pay Transparency Class Actions: A Wild Ride} The original statute allowed damages of $5,000 per applicant for each deficient posting, which is why the Hopkins settlement uses that same figure as the individual cap.
The legislature amended the law effective July 27, 2025. Employers now get a five business-day “notice and cure” window to fix a noncompliant posting, damages run from $100 to $5,000 per violation, and administrative penalties are capped at $1,000.{9Washington Retail Association. Washington Supreme Court Clarifies Salary Posting Requirement}{} Those amendments apply prospectively. Postings from January 2023 through July 2025 remain subject to the original penalty structure, which is the window covered by Hopkins.{8IADC. Washington State Pay Transparency Class Actions: A Wild Ride}