ORP Case Status Update 9/17/04
Settlement discussions with the Oregon University System (OUS) and the Attorney’s Office have broken down. OUS refuses to bind itself for the future in terms of employers contributions to the ORP, has ignored the issue of lost earnings calculations and the evidently numerous mistakes made in those calculations, and refuses to reimburse AOF for its actual costs and attorney fees.
We are proceeding to amend our original complaint to convert this case into a class action. We plan to aggressively pursue the award of statutory interest (8%) to ORP member accounts on employer contribution funds that were improperly withheld. This is in lieu of lost earnings calculations which OUS has indicated 84% of ORP members would not have received.
We have also filed a discovery request to compel OUS to provide a variety of documents related to this issue.
AOF continues to bear the entire financial burden of this litigation. Through member dues and donations from ORP members, we have spent over $23,000 to date. As we enter into this new stage of litigation, additional expenses will accrue. As a result, we must ask ORP members to again contribute to the litigation fund. Please help today. Your assistance is critical to our efforts.