1. Why was the Notice issued?
2. What is a class action?
3. What is this lawsuit about?
4. Why is there a settlement?
5. How do I know if I am in the Settlement Class?
6. What does the settlement provide?
7. How much will my payment be?
8. When will I get my payment?
9. How do I get a payment?
10. What am I giving up if I stay in the Class?
11. What happens if I do nothing at all?
12. Do I have a lawyer in the case?
13. How will the lawyers be paid?
14. How do I get out of the settlement?
15. If I don’t exclude myself, can I sue the Defendant for the same thing later?
16. If I exclude myself, can I get anything from this Settlement?
17. How do I object to the Settlement?
18. What’s the difference between objecting and excluding myself from the Settlement?
19. When and where will the Court decide whether to approve the Settlement?
20. Do I have to come to the hearing?
21. May I speak at the hearing?
22. Where do I get more information?
A Court authorized the Notice because you have a right to know about a proposed settlement of this class action lawsuit and about all of your options, before the Court decides whether to give final approval to the settlement. The Notice explains the lawsuit, the settlement, and your legal rights.
The Honorable Gail L. Noll, of the Circuit Court for Sangamon County, Illinois, Seventh Judicial Circuit is overseeing this case. The case is called Brand, et al. v. The University of Phoenix, Inc., Case No. 2026LA000170. The people who sued are called the Plaintiffs. The Defendant is The University of Phoenix, Inc.
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In a class action, one or more people called the class representatives (in this case, Lauren Brand and Janielle Dawson) sue on behalf of a group or a “class” of people who have similar claims. In a class action, the court resolves the issues for all class members, except for those who exclude themselves from the Class.
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This lawsuit claims that Defendant violated the Video Privacy Protection Act, 18 U.S.C. § 2710, et seq., the Electronic Communications and Privacy Act, 18 U.S.C. § 2510, et seq., and the Illinois Eavesdropping Act, 720 Ill. Comp. Stat. 5/14-1, et seq., by disclosing its students’ personally identifiable information (“PII”) to Meta Platforms, Inc. and other third parties without consent. Defendant denies that it violated any law but has agreed to the settlement to avoid the uncertainties and expenses associated with continuing the case.
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The Court has not decided whether the Plaintiffs or the Defendant should win this case. Instead, both sides agreed to a settlement. That way, they avoid the uncertainties and expenses associated with ongoing litigation, and Class Members will get compensation sooner rather than after the completion of a trial or not at all.
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The Settlement Class is defined as:
“all individuals in the United States who were enrolled at The University of Phoenix from April 1, 2023, to and through the date on which class notice is disseminated, as well as all individuals in Illinois who were enrolled at The University of Phoenix from April 1, 2020, to and through the date on which class notice is disseminated.” |
Excluded from the Class is any entity in which Defendant has a controlling interest, officers or directors of Defendant, and the judge presiding over this action as well as his or her immediate family members.
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Defendant has agreed to pay $25.00 for all approved claims to the Settlement Class (subject to pro rata reduction should the Gross Maximum Funding amount of $8,750,000.00 be reached), together with notice and administrative expenses, approved attorneys’ fees and costs to Class Counsel, and a service award to each of the Class Representatives. Additionally, Defendant agrees that it will provide notice to individuals in the United States who enroll at The University of Phoenix on the website that the website uses cookies and similar tools via a banner and through Defendant’s privacy policy.
A detailed description of the settlement benefits can be found in the Settlement Agreement.
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If you are a member of the Settlement Class, you may submit a Claim Form to receive a Cash Payment of $25.00 (subject to pro rata reduction should the Gross Maximum Funding amount of rata reduction should the Gross Maximum Funding amount of $8,750,000.00 be reached). You must submit a Claim Form in order to receive any compensation under the Settlement.
You must provide proof of your Settlement Class membership when filing a claim by providing the unique LoginID and PIN on the notice you received by email. If for some reason you did not receive this information, but believe you are a Settlement Class Member, please email the Settlement Administrator at info@UOPPixelSettlement.com to request your LoginID and PIN.
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The hearing to consider the fairness of the settlement is scheduled for November 20, 2026. If the Court approves the settlement, eligible Settlement Class Members whose claims were approved by the Settlement Administrator will receive their cash payment approximately 100 days after the settlement has been finally approved and/or any appeals process is complete. Payment by check will be the default payment method, or you can choose to receive a payment by Zelle, Venmo, PayPal or other similar electronic payment method offered by the Settlement Administrator.
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If you are a Settlement Class Member and you want to get a cash payment, you must complete and submit a Claim Form by November 5, 2026. Claim Forms can be submitted online, or by downloading and printing and mailing a paper Claim Form, copies of which are available here.
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If the settlement becomes final, you will give up your right to sue Defendant for the claims this settlement resolves. The Settlement Agreement describes the specific claims you are giving up against the Defendant. You will be “releasing” the Defendant and certain of its affiliates described in Paragraph 1.25 of the Settlement Agreement. Unless you exclude yourself (see FAQ 14), you are “releasing” the claims, regardless of whether you submit a claim or not. The Settlement Agreement is available here.
The Settlement Agreement describes the released claims with specific descriptions (see Paragraphs 1.25-1.27 and 3.1-3.2 of the Settlement Agreement), so read it carefully. If you have any questions you can talk to the lawyers listed in FAQ 12 for free or you can, of course, talk to your own lawyer if you have questions about what this means.
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If you do nothing, you won’t get any benefits from this settlement. But, unless you exclude yourself, you won’t be able to start a lawsuit or be part of any other lawsuit against the Defendant for the claims being resolved by this settlement.
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The Court has appointed Joshua D. Arisohn of Arisohn LLC and Scott R. Drury of Drury Legal, LLC, to be the attorneys representing the Settlement Class. They are called “Class Counsel.”
They believe, after conducting an extensive investigation, that the Settlement Agreement is fair, reasonable, and in the best interests of the Settlement Class. You will not be charged for these lawyers. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer in this case, you may hire one at your expense.
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Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses will be paid from the Gross Settlement Amount in an amount determined and awarded by the Court. Class Counsel will seek no more than 35% of the Gross Maximum Funding amount (currently set at $8,750,000.00), but the Court may award less than this amount.
As approved by the Court, Defendant will pay the Class Representatives service awards. The Class Representatives will seek no more than $5,000.00 each as service awards, but the Court may award less than this amount.
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To exclude yourself from the settlement, you must mail or otherwise deliver a letter (or request for exclusion) stating that you want to be excluded from the Brand, et al. v. The University of Phoenix, Inc., Case No. 2026LA000170 settlement. Your letter or request for exclusion must also include:
your name;
your address;
your signature;
the name and number of this case; and
a statement that you wish to be excluded.
You must mail or deliver your exclusion request no later than November 5, 2026, to:
University of Phoenix Pixel Settlement
Attn: Exclusion Requests
P.O. Box 25191
Santa Ana, CA 92799
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No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up any right to sue the Defendant for the claims being resolved by this Settlement.
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No. If you exclude yourself, do not submit a Claim Form to ask for benefits.
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If you’re a Settlement Class Member, you can object to the settlement if you don’t like any part of it. You can give reasons why you think the Court should not approve it. The Court will consider your views.
To object, you must file with the Court a letter or brief stating that you object to the Settlement in Brand, et al. v. The University of Phoenix, Inc., Case No. 2026LA000170 and identify all your reasons for your objections (including citations and supporting evidence) and attach any materials you rely on for your objections. Your letter or brief must also include:
your name and address;
an explanation of the basis upon which you claim to be a Settlement Class Member;
all grounds for the objection, including all citations to legal authority and evidence supporting the objection;
the name and contact information of any and all attorneys representing, advising, or in any way assisting you in connection with your objection or who may profit from the pursuit of the objection; and
your signature.
If you, or an attorney assisting you with your objection, have ever objected to any class action settlement where you or the objecting attorney has asked for or received payment in exchange for dismissal of the objection (or any related appeal) without modification to the settlement, you must include a statement in your objection identifying each such case by full case caption. You must also mail or deliver a copy of your letter or brief to Class Counsel and Defendant’s Counsel listed below.
If you want to appear and speak at the Final Approval Hearing to object to the settlement, with or without a lawyer (explained below in answer to FAQ 21), you must say so in your letter or brief. You must file the objection with the Court no later than November 5, 2026, and mail copies of your objection to both Class Counsel and Defendant’s counsel:
Court | Class Counsel | Defendant’s Counsel |
The Hon. Gail L. Noll | Joshua D. Arisohn | Joel C. Griswold |
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Objecting simply means telling the Court that you don’t like something about the settlement. You can object only if you stay in the Settlement Class. Excluding yourself from the Settlement Class is telling the Court that you don’t want to be part of the Settlement Class. If you exclude yourself, you have no basis to object because the case no longer affects you.
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The Court will hold the Final Approval Hearing at 9:30 a.m. on November 20, 2026, virtually via Zoom (Meeting ID: 269 739 8957; Password 903784). The purpose of the hearing will be for the Court to determine whether to approve the settlement as fair, reasonable, adequate, and in the best interests of the Settlement Class; to consider Class Counsel’s request for attorneys’ fees and expenses; and to consider the request for a service award to each of the Class Representatives. At that hearing, the Court will be available to hear any objections and arguments concerning the fairness of the settlement.
The hearing may be postponed to a different date or time without notice, so it is a good idea to check this website for updates, or you may also call Class Counsel at (917) 656-0569. If, however, you timely objected to the settlement and advised the Court that you intend to appear and speak at the Final Approval Hearing, you will receive notice of any change in the date of such Final Approval Hearing.
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No. Class Counsel will answer any questions the Court may have. But you are welcome to come at your own expense. If you send an objection or comment, you don’t have to come to Court to talk about it. As long as you filed and mailed your written objection on time, the Court will consider it. You may also pay another lawyer to attend, but it’s not required.
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Yes. You may ask the Court for permission to speak at the Fairness Hearing. To do so, you must include in your letter or brief objecting to the settlement a statement saying that it is your “Notice of Intent to Appear in Brand, et al. v. The University of Phoenix, Inc., Case No. 2026LA000170.” It must include your name, address, telephone number, and signature, as well as the name and address of your lawyer if one is appearing for you. Your objection and notice of intent to appear must be filed with the Court and postmarked no later than November 5, 2026.
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This website and the Notice are a summary of the Settlement. More details are in the Settlement Agreement. You can get a copy of the Settlement Agreement, and other case-related documents, on the Important Documents page.
If you have any questions about the website, class action notice or this case, you can ask for free help any time by contacting the Settlement Administrator at:
University of Phoenix Pixel Settlement
c/o Settlement Administrator
P.O. Box 25191
Santa Ana, CA 92799
Email: info@UOPPixelSettlement.com
Call toll-free, 24/7: (866) 675-2696
You may also contact Class Counsel, if you have any questions. Before doing so, however, please read this website and the full Notice carefully. You may also find additional information elsewhere on this website.
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