Welcome to the Website for the Patton v. Biola University, Inc. Proposed Class Action Settlement

This website relates to a proposed settlement of a class action lawsuit. If you are a Class Member, it contains important information affecting your rights to participate in the Settlement as further described below.

If you were mailed the Notice of Settlement, it is because Biola University’s (“Defendant” or “Biola” or “Biola University”) records show you are a member of one or more of the following Classes: “Adjunct Class” and/or “Reimbursement Class” and/or “Full-time Faculty Reimbursement Class” and therefore entitled to a payment from this proposed class action Settlement. Each Class is defined as follows:

• “Adjunct Class” or “Adjunct Class Members” refers to: all individuals employed by Biola University in California as exempt part-time adjunct faculty during the Adjunct Class Period, defined as the period from August 16, 2021, through to March 31, 2025.

• “Reimbursement Class” or “Reimbursement Class Members” refers to: all individuals employed by Biola University in California as exempt employees, who Biola knew or should have known were performing some or all of their work duties remotely/away from the Biola campus during the Reimbursement Class Period, defined as the period from April 1, 2021, through March 31, 2025.

  Specifically excluded from this Reimbursement Class are Full-time Faculty who are part of the Full-time Faculty Reimbursement Class, as defined below, student employees, and those employees who, because of the nature of their job duties, could not perform those duties remotely/away from campus (e.g., Campus Safety officers, Facilities workers such as custodians, etc.).

• “Full-time Faculty Reimbursement Class” refers to: all faculty members defined internally by Biola University as Full-time Faculty who were required and/or expected to work remotely during the Full-time Faculty Reimbursement Class Period, defined as the period from April 1, 2021, through to December 31, 2021.

This Settlement resolves a class-action lawsuit (the “Action”) brought against Biola University by a former employee McKenna Patton (“Plaintiff”). The Action alleges that Biola (1) misclassified Adjunct Class Members who were paid on a per-course basis as exempt and failed to pay them for all hours worked, (2) failed to pay Adjunct Class Members all wages due upon discharge from employment, and (3) failed to reimburse Reimbursement Class Members and Full-time Faculty Reimbursement Class Members for home office expenses that they incurred as a result of their remote work from home.

Biola denies that it has engaged in any unlawful activity, has failed to comply with the law in any respect, has any liability to anyone under the claims asserted in the Action, or that but for the Settlement, a Class should be certified in the Action.

The Court has already granted preliminary approval of the proposed Settlement and has approved this website. The Court has not yet decided whether to grant final approval. Your legal rights are affected whether you act or do not act. Read this website carefully. You will be deemed to have carefully read and understood it. At the Final Approval Hearing, the Court will decide whether to grant final approval of the Settlement and how much of the Settlement will be paid to Plaintiff and Plaintiff’s attorneys (“Class Counsel”). The Court will also decide whether to enter a judgment that requires Biola to make payments under the Settlement and requires Class Members to give up their rights to assert certain claims against Biola.

If you worked for Biola during the Adjunct Class Period, and/or during the Reimbursement Class Period or Full-time Faculty Reimbursement Class Period you have two basis options under the Settlement: