Frequently Asked Questions

This Notice has been sent to you because the Defendants’ records show that you purchased Ready-Mix Concrete directly from one or more of the Subject Plants at any time from January 1, 2010 through and including July 31, 2016. You have the right to know about two proposed Settlements of a class action lawsuit that may affect your rights.

This Notice explains the Lawsuit, the terms of the Thomas and Evans Settlements, your legal rights, what benefits may be available, who may be eligible for them, and what you will be giving Thomas and Evans in these Settlements.

The Court in charge of the case is the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina. The case is known Pro Slab, Inc., et al. v. Argos USA LLC, et al., Case No. 2:17-cv-03185-BHH. The companies who sued are called the Plaintiffs. The Plaintiffs in this Lawsuit, who seek to represent themselves and the proposed Settlement Classes are: Pro Slab, Inc. Bremer Construction Management, Inc. and Michelle L. Vieira, Trustee of Forrest Concrete, LLC.

The companies that the Plaintiffs sued are called the Defendants. The Defendants in this lawsuit are Lafarge, Argos, Coastal, Thomas, Evans and Elite. The Defendant companies sold Ready-Mix Concrete from the Subject Plants in the greater Savannah area, including parts of Georgia and South Carolina, during some or all of the period from January 1, 2010 through July 31, 2016 that is the focus of the Lawsuit.

The Lawsuit asserts that, from January 1, 2010 through July 31, 2016, the Defendants participated in an unlawful conspiracy to raise, fix, maintain, or stabilize the price of Ready-Mix Concrete sold from the Subject Plants, in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Act, Title 15, United States Code, Section 1. The Plaintiffs claim that this conspiracy among the Defendants resulted in artificially high prices for Ready-Mix Concrete sold by Defendants from the Subject Plants.  The Plaintiffs are seeking money damages on behalf of themselves and other persons and entities who purchased Ready-Mix Concrete directly from the Subject Plants during this time period. The Defendants have denied liability and raised certain defenses to these claims, which if sustained by the Court following a trial may minimize or defeat any recovery for the Classes. The Court has not made any determination of any liability as to the Defendants for these claims.

A class action is a lawsuit in which one or more persons or entities called class representatives sue on behalf of other persons or entities who have similar claims. Together all these persons are a “class” or, individually, “class members.” In a class action, one court resolves the issues for all class members, except for those who exclude themselves from the class.  For this reason, the Court must find that the Thomas and Evans Settlements are fair, reasonable and adequate to the Settlement Classes before the Settlements can receive final court approval.

The Lawsuit has not gone to a trial. Instead, the Plaintiffs and Thomas, and the Plaintiffs and Evans, agreed to settle to avoid the costs and risks of trial. The Settlements provide the opportunity for payments or other benefits to be made available to Class Members. Under the Thomas and Evans Settlements, Class Members give Thomas and Evans releases of any right they may have to pursue the same legal claims brought, or which could have been brought, in this case against Thomas and Evans based on direct purchases of Ready-Mix Concrete from the Subject Plants.

You are a member of the Thomas Settlement Class and the Evans Settlement Class if you purchased Ready-Mix Concrete directly from one or more of the Subject Plants at any time from and including January 1, 2010 through and including July 31, 2016. 

You are not a Class Member if you are one of the Defendants, their employees, their respective parents, subsidiaries, or affiliates. You are also not a Class Member if you are a government entity.

If you are still not sure if you are included, please review the detailed information contained in the Thomas Settlement and Evans Settlement, under the Case Documents tab. You may also call the Settlement Administrator at 1-888-999-5317, or contact Class Counsel at (317) 572-7119 or [email protected].

The Thomas Settlement. Under the terms of the Thomas Settlement, Thomas has agreed to pay the amount of $7,600,000 (the “Thomas Settlement Amount”) pursuant to the terms of the Thomas Settlement.

The Evans Settlement. Under the terms of the Evans Settlement, Evans has agreed to pay the amount of $5,800,000, which will be reduced to $5,650,000 if the reduced amount is paid in full no later than 10 days after the Effective Date of the Evans Settlement (the “Evans Settlement Amount”). Evans has agreed to pay $4,000,000 of the Evans Settlement Amount within 10 days after the preliminary approval of the Evans Settlement. If Evans does not pay the remaining balance of the reduced Evans Settlement Amount within 10 days after the Effective Date of the Evans Settlement, Evans has agreed to pay the remaining balance of the higher Evans Settlement Amount, $5,800,000, no later than seven (7) months after the Effective Date of the Evans Settlement.

The Thomas and Evans Settlements were each achieved after several years of litigation and numerous negotiating sessions between Class Counsel and the lawyers for Thomas and Evans. They were also based on an economic analysis of the potential damages incurred by the Settlement Classes. Because of the inherent risks of litigation, Plaintiffs believe that the Thomas and Evans Settlements provide a fair and efficient resolution of the Plaintiffs’ and Class Members’ claims against Thomas and Evans in the Lawsuit.

Under the terms of the Settlements, Class Counsel will seek Court permission to distribute part of the Thomas and Evans Settlement Amounts to pay amounts approved by the Court for the costs of administering the Settlement (such as the cost of giving this Notice), Class Counsel’s attorneys’ fees and reasonable expenses, and incentive payments to the class representatives (not to exceed $10,000 each for the Thomas Settlement and $10,000 each for the Evans settlement). The Settlement Amounts remaining after Court-approved distributions for these payments are called the “Thomas Net Settlement Fund” and the “Evans Net Settlement Fund.”

Subject to Court approval, the proposed distribution of each of the Net Settlement Funds to participating Class Members will be in direct proportion to the amount of each participating Class Member’s purchases of Ready-Mix Concrete from the Subject Plants at any time from January 1, 2010 through July 31, 2016, when compared to all such purchases by participating Class Members.

The Net Settlement Funds will not be distributed to Class Members at this time.

The Court will hold a hearing on November 3, 2025, at 10:00 a.m. to decide whether to give final approval to the Thomas Settlement and Evans Settlement. If the Court approves the Settlements and there are no appeals, each Settlement will become final thirty (30) days after the Court’s approval (the “Effective Date”). 

You can check this website after the Fairness Hearing on November 3, 2025, to confirm whether the Court has approved the Thomas and Evans Settlements.

If you received this Notice and believe you are a member of the Settlement Classes, you do not need to take any action at this time to participate in the Thomas Settlement or Evans Settlement. Once the Court approves a method of distributing the Settlement Funds, information about the proposed distribution of settlement funds will be provided to Class Members, along with Claim Forms and instructions for completing a claim. These materials will also be made available on the Settlement Website.

NO CLAIMS SHOULD BE SUBMITTED AT THIS TIME.  However, if you did not receive a Notice by U.S. Mail, but believe you are a Settlement Class Member, you should complete a contact form on this website so that you can directly receive future communications about the Settlements and a Claim Form, and to receive communications about any future settlements or other significant developments in the Lawsuit.

If you are a member of the Settlement Classes and do not exclude yourself, you will be bound by the terms of the Thomas and Evans Settlements and any orders of the Court related to the Thomas and Evans Settlements, and you agree to and will release any right you may have to pursue the same legal claims brought, or which could have been brought, in this case against Thomas or Evans based on direct purchases from the Subject Plants at any time from January 1, 2010 through July 31, 2016 that relate to antitrust or anticompetitive claims. A complete description of the released claims can be found in the Thomas Settlement and Evans Settlement on the Settlement Website.

You may request to be excluded from, or to “opt out” of, either or both of the Thomas Settlement Class or the Evans Settlement Class. 

If you elect to be excluded from the Thomas Settlement Class, you will not be bound by any of the terms of the Thomas Settlement or any judgment entered pursuant to the Thomas Settlement, nor will you be eligible to receive any of benefits of the Thomas Settlement. You will retain and be free to pursue any claims that you may have against Thomas on your own behalf and at your own cost.

Similarly, if you elect to be excluded from the Evans Settlement Class, you will not be bound by any of the terms of the Evans Settlement or any judgment entered pursuant to the Evans Settlement, nor will you be eligible to receive any of benefits of the Evans Settlement. You will retain and be free to pursue any claims that you may have against Evans on your own behalf and at your own cost. 

If you wish to exclude yourself from either Settlement Class, you must mail a written request for exclusion, no later than September 19, 2025, to the following:

Unless you exclude yourself, you cannot sue Thomas for the claims resolved by the Thomas Settlement or sue Evans for the claims resolved by the Evans Settlement.

If you exclude yourself from the Settlement Class for purposes of the Thomas Settlement, you cannot participate in or object to the Thomas Settlement, you will not receive any money from the Settlement, and any claims you may have against Thomas will be subject to applicable statutes of limitation.

If you exclude yourself from the Settlement Class for purposes of the Evans Settlement, you cannot participate in or object to the Evans Settlement, you will not receive any money from the Settlement, and any claims you may have against Evans will be subject to applicable statutes of limitation.

If you are a Class Member and have not excluded yourself, you can object to the Thomas Settlement or Evans Settlement or any part of the Settlements. The Court will consider your views. Your objection must be in writing, and must be mailed no later than September 19, 2025, to the following:

If you exclude yourself from a Settlement, you are no longer a member of the Settlement Class for that Settlement and you keep your right to file your own lawsuit against the settling Defendant (in this case, Thomas or Evans) at your own expense. If you exclude yourself from a Settlement, you may not object to that Settlement and you cannot receive any payments or credits from that Settlement.  If you remain a Settlement Class Member, you may object to that Settlement.

The law firms of Cohen & Malad, LLP, Heins Mills & Olson, P.L.C, and Preti, Flaherty, Beliveau & Pachios LLP have been appointed by the Court and represent you and other Class Members. These lawyers are called Class Counsel. If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense. However, any lawyer intending to appear at the Fairness Hearing must be duly admitted to practice law before the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina and must file a written appearance no later than September 19, 2025. Copies of the appearance must be served on Class Counsel and counsel for Thomas and Evans at the addresses included in this Notice in accordance with the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.

If you do nothing, you will remain a Thomas Settlement Class Member and Evans Settlement Class Member, and will remain eligible for any benefits available under the Settlements. If the Court approves the Settlements, you will be bound by their terms as well as any Court orders related to the Settlements, and a release will be granted to Thomas and Evans of any rights you may have to pursue the same legal claims in this case against them. To receive payments from the Thomas or Evans Settlement, you will be required to submit a completed Claim Form. Once the Court approves a method of distributing the Settlement Funds, information about the proposed distribution of settlement funds, along with Claim Forms and instructions for completing a claim, will be provided to known Class Members with contact information on file. These materials will also be made available on this website.

Class Counsel will file a petition with the Court no later than October 4, 2025, asking for payment of attorneys’ fees in the amount of 1/3 of the Thomas Settlement Amount and Evans Settlement Amount, and the reimbursement of reasonable expenses to be paid from these Settlement Amounts. The petition will be available on the Settlement Website. To date, litigation expenses total approximately $3.6 million. Settlement Class Counsel will seek reimbursement of outstanding expenses (those expenses that are not reimbursed from the earlier Lafarge settlement) from the Thomas and Evans Settlements. The Court may consider whether to approve the payment of attorneys’ fees and expenses in these amounts during the Fairness Hearing, or at a later time determined by the Court.

If the Court approves these fees and expenses, they will be paid from the Settlement Amounts. These fees and expenses, however, will not be paid from either Settlement Amount until that Settlement becomes Final. The costs of providing this Notice and published Notice of the Settlements, and the costs of settlement administration, will also be paid from the Settlement Amounts. 

The Court will hold a hearing–which is called the Fairness Hearing–at the J. Waties Waring Judicial Center, 83 Meeting Street, Charleston, South Carolina, at 10:00 o’clock on November 3, 2025. At the Fairness Hearing, the Court will consider whether the Thomas Settlement and Evans Settlement are fair, reasonable, and adequate. The Court will consider any objections and listen to Class Members who have made written objections and timely asked to speak at the hearing. After the Fairness Hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Thomas and Evans Settlements.  

You do not need to attend the Fairness Hearing, but you are welcome to come at your own expense. If you have sent a written objection, you do not need to be present for the Court to consider it.

If you have submitted a timely written objection to the Thomas Settlement or Evans Settlement and requested to be heard, the Court may allow you to speak at the Fairness Hearing. If you wish for your lawyer to speak for you, he or she must have submitted a timely appearance as provided above.

Reminder: If you have excluded yourself from either of the Settlement Classes, you may not object to that Settlement and you may not speak at the Fairness Hearing about that Settlement.

You may have received a separate Notice of another settlement in this Lawsuit with Lafarge. The Lafarge Settlement is separate from the Evans and Thomas Settlements but has similar terms. The deadline to exclude yourself or object to the Lafarge Settlement have now expired.

This Notice summarizes the proposed Thomas and Evans Settlements. More details are in the Settlement Agreements. You can find copies of the Settlement Agreements, other important documents, and information about the current status of the litigation under the Case Documents tab. You may also contact the Settlement Administrator at 1-888-999-5317, or [email protected] or by mail at the address listed in Question 13 above.