Yes, Milberg is a legitimate class action law firm. It has operated since 1965, has offices in the United States and the United Kingdom, and the notices, emails, and text messages it sends to potential class members are real legal communications rather than scams.1Milberg. About Us Two things are worth knowing before you respond, though: the firm’s predecessor pleaded guilty to a federal kickback scheme in the 2000s, and current client reviews about communication and payment timing are poor.
How To Confirm the Notice You Received Is Real
Whether the message came by mail, email, or text, you can verify it in a few minutes without clicking anything in the notice itself.
- Open a browser and search the defendant company’s name together with “settlement” or “lawsuit.” Real settlements have official administrator websites with court documents, eligibility rules, and claim deadlines.2NBC Connecticut. How Do You Know a Notice to Join a Class Action Lawsuit Is Legit
- Match the case number on your notice against the number listed on the official settlement site.3AARP. Class Action Settlement Notice
- Cross-check against established news coverage or aggregators such as ClassAction.org.4Washington University Information Security. Scam of the Month: Class Action Lawsuits
- Reach the settlement site or the firm’s site by typing the address yourself, not by tapping links in the message.3AARP. Class Action Settlement Notice
- Do not pay anything. Legitimate class action settlements never charge upfront “processing” or “administrative” fees.3AARP. Class Action Settlement Notice
Milberg itself discloses in its terms that it uses automated emails, text messages, and targeted online ads to reach potential class members.5Milberg. SMS Terms and Conditions Those outreach channels are standard for high-volume plaintiffs’ firms, so a cold text or email with the firm’s name on it is not by itself a red flag.
Who Milberg Is Today
The firm was founded in 1965 by Lawrence Milberg and Melvyn Weiss and is widely credited with pioneering federal class action litigation under Rule 23.1Milberg. About Us It has gone through several name changes. It was originally Milberg, Weiss, Bershad, Hynes & Lerach, later shortened to Milberg Weiss.6ABA Journal. Milberg Weiss Founder Melvyn Weiss Dies at 82 After the criminal case described below, it rebranded as Milberg LLP, merged with Sanders Phillips Grossman in 2018, and then in January 2021 combined with Greg Coleman Law and Whitfield Bryson to form Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC, which operates publicly as “Milberg.”7PR Newswire. Renowned Law Firm Milberg Set to Expand in 2021
The firm’s global headquarters is in San Juan, Puerto Rico, with its principal U.S. place of business in Knoxville, Tennessee, and additional offices around the country and in the United Kingdom.1Milberg. About Us Milberg says it has recovered more than $50 billion for clients since 1965 across class action, mass arbitration, and mass tort work.8Milberg. Class Action Lawsuits Its mass arbitration group alone reports more than $250 million recovered for consumers, including a $64.5 million settlement with Meta Platforms and a $35 million settlement with Snap.9Milberg. Mass Arbitration
In short, this is a real, active, nationally recognized plaintiffs’ firm.
The 2006 Kickback Case Against the Predecessor Firm
Anyone searching the Milberg name will find news of a federal criminal prosecution, and it’s worth knowing what actually happened. In 2006, a federal grand jury in Los Angeles returned a 20-count indictment against Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman, charging the firm with obstruction of justice, perjury, bribery, and fraud.10The New York Times. Law Firm Indicted in Kickback Case Prosecutors alleged that from the early 1980s through 2005 the firm had secretly paid individuals to serve as named plaintiffs so it could file class actions and collect legal fees. The Department of Justice said the scheme touched more than 165 lawsuits and produced roughly $239 million in fees.11U.S. Department of Justice. Milberg Weiss Non-Prosecution Agreement
Four former name partners pleaded guilty. Co-founder Melvyn Weiss pleaded guilty to a racketeering conspiracy charge, was sentenced to 30 months in federal prison, forfeited $9.75 million, and paid a $250,000 fine.12U.S. Department of Justice. Melvyn Weiss Sentencing Former name partner William Lerach was sentenced to two years in federal prison and forfeited $7.75 million.13Courthouse News Service. Bill Lerach Sentenced to 2 Years in Prison Former executive committee members David Bershad and Steven Schulman also pleaded guilty. The firm itself entered a non-prosecution agreement with the DOJ in June 2008, paying $75 million, accepting a compliance monitor, and running a two-year best-practices program.11U.S. Department of Justice. Milberg Weiss Non-Prosecution Agreement
The partners responsible were prosecuted, sentenced, and are no longer with the firm. The current entity is a successor that reached its present form through mergers in 2018 and 2021, long after the case closed.
What Current Clients Say
Reviews from individual clients are a weaker spot. On the Better Business Bureau, Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman holds an F rating, tied to five unanswered complaints.14Better Business Bureau. Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman On Lawyers.com it has a 1.4-out-of-5 rating across six reviews, with 83% of reviewers giving one star.15Lawyers.com. Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman, PLLC The themes are consistent across platforms: poor communication, unreturned calls and emails, unexplained case dismissals, long delays in payment, and clients being dropped from active cases without notice.16LawCrossing. Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman LLC Reviews
Complaints like these are not unusual at firms handling thousands of class members at once, where an individual claimant may rarely speak to a specific attorney. The pattern is consistent enough, though, that you should expect limited back-and-forth and a long timeline rather than personal case management.
Former clients have also sued the firm. Plaintiffs from a 2001 class action against Variable Annuity Life Insurance Company filed a 2009 malpractice case alleging the lawyers missed discovery requirements and deadlines, which led a court to strike expert testimony and vacate class certification. A federal judge in Arizona initially denied class certification for the malpractice claims; the Ninth Circuit reversed in 2015, finding Arizona law applied.17Courthouse News Service. 9th Cir. Finds Arizona Fine for Class Action
What Joining Actually Commits You To
Submitting your information through Milberg’s website does not create an attorney-client relationship on its own; that requires a signed representation agreement.18Milberg. Class Action Settlements 2024 Joining a class action, however, generally means giving up the right to sue the defendant individually over the same conduct, so it’s worth reading the notice’s exclusion (“opt-out”) instructions before deciding.2NBC Connecticut. How Do You Know a Notice to Join a Class Action Lawsuit Is Legit If the official settlement website confirms the case, the deadline, and your eligibility, the notice from Milberg is doing what it says.