The notice is to tell you about the settlement of two class action lawsuits, Ocana, et al. v. Renew Financial Holdings, Inc., et al. and Nemore, et al. v. Renovate America Inc., brought on behalf of homeowners who had Property Assessed Clean Energy ("PACE") assessments with the County of Los Angeles, administered by Renew Financial or Renovate America.

If you received a notice, it is because you may be a member of the group of people affected, called the “class.” The notice gives you a summary of the terms of the proposed settlement agreement, explains what rights class members have, and helps class members make informed decisions about what action to take.

Read the notice to understand the settlement and to determine if you are a class member. Then, decide if you want to:

Your deadline to object or opt out: June 13, 2024

Settlement approval hearing: September 24, 2024

Your deadline to submit a claim form: June 13, 2024

There are two related cases: (1) Reginald Nemore, Violeta Senac, Aurelia Millender, and Allen Bowen v. Renovate America, Inc. and the County of Los Angeles (Case No. BC701810), and (2) Zenia Ocana, Juan Ocana Lau, Violeta Senac, and Maria Alvarez v. Renew Financial Holdings, Inc., Renew Financial Corp. II, and the County of Los Angeles (Case No. BC701809).

These lawsuits allege that, in implementing the PACE program, Los Angeles County, Renew, and Renovate committed financial elder abuse, entered into an unlawful PACE contract, and breached the PACE contracts. The lawsuits also sought cancellation of taxes due to PACE assessments and damages resulting from homeowners' PACE assessments.

In 2022, the parties agreed to settle, which means they have reached an agreement to resolve the lawsuit. Both sides want to avoid the risk and expense of further litigation.

The settlement is on behalf of the homeowners who brought the case and all members of the settlement class, who are all homeowners who entered into a Renew Financial Assessment Contract or Renovate America Assessment Contract with Los Angeles County between March 1, 2015 and March 31, 2018, where that assessment contract has been recorded as a lien against the homeowner’s real property. The Court has not decided this case in favor of either side.

The Court will hold a fairness hearing to decide whether to approve the settlement. The hearing will be held at:

Where: Department 10 of the Spring Street Courthouse, 312 N. Spring Street, Los Angeles, California, 90012.

When: September 24, 2024, at 9:30 AM.

The Court has directed the parties to send notice about the proposed settlement. Because the settlement of a class action decides the rights of all members of the proposed class, the Court must give final approval to the settlement before it can take effect. Payments will only be made if the Court gives final approval to the settlement. If the Court gives final approval of the settlement, notice of final approval of the settlement will be posted on the Important Documents page.

You do not have to attend, but you may at your own expense. You may also ask the Court for permission to speak and express your opinion about the settlement. If the Court does not approve the settlement or the parties decide to end it, it will be void and the lawsuit will continue. The date of the hearing may change without further notice to members of the class. To confirm the hearing date, see the Home page.

The settlement pays money to homeowners who entered into a Renew Financial Assessment Contract or Renovate America Assessment Contract with Los Angeles County between March 1, 2015 and March 31, 2018, and whose assessment contract was recorded as a lien against the homeowner’s property.

The County of Los Angeles and Renew Financial have agreed to pay $12 million into a settlement fund. This money will be divided among the class members and will also be used to pay for costs and fees approved by the Court, including attorneys' fees and the costs of settlement administration (not to exceed $2 million in total).

The settlement provides for four levels of benefits to class members who submit claims. Class members may submit one claim per qualifying PACE lien.

Level One (All Class Members): $500,000 of the Settlement Fund shall be distributed on an equal pro rata basis for every claim submitted. For example, if there are 1,000 claims, then each claim will result in a $500 payment from this “Level One” portion of the distribution. Similarly, if there are 10,000 claims, then each claim will result in a $50 payment from this Level One portion of the distribution.

In addition, certain Class Members shall be eligible for additional compensation according to the criteria described in the Level Two, Level Three, and Level Four sections below. Those additional amounts will be paid based on the amounts remaining in the $12 million Settlement Fund after subtracting the $500,000 Level One distribution, the costs of settlement administration, and any attorneys’ fees and costs the Court may award.

Level Two:  All Class Members who had a debt-to-income ratio, after consideration of the PACE assessment, of greater than 50% at the time the PACE assessment was entered.

To learn how to determine your debt-to-income ratio, see this calculation worksheet.

Level Three: Class Members who meet Level Two criteria and who were 65 years old or older at the time of their PACE assessment or had limited English proficiency and only received PACE related documents in English.

Level Four: Class Members who meet Level Two criteria and who had a debt-to-income ratio, after consideration of the PACE assessment, of greater than 100% at the time the PACE assessment was entered.

For granted claims under Levels Two, Three, and Four, the Settlement Administrator will make payment on behalf of the Class Member directly towards the Class Member’s existing PACE assessment in accordance of the terms and conditions of the Renew Financial Assessment Contract and/or the Renovate America Assessment Contract, up to the amount of any existing PACE assessment, before remitting the remainder of any settlement amount for that class member directly to that class member.

Depending on your personal circumstances as documented in any claim you submit, you may be eligible for benefits at Level One, Level Two, Level Three, or Level Four. Those eligible for benefits at Levels Two, Three, and Four will receive additional benefits, with the highest benefit amounts being received by those at Level Four.

In addition to the payments described above, six Class Representatives will receive an incentive award in the amount of $12,500. One former putative Class Representative will also receive this incentive award for their past services as a putative Class Representative. This incentive award will be deducted from part of the Settlement Fund available to Class Members.

Members of the settlement class will “release” their claims as part of the settlement, which means they cannot sue L.A. County or Renew Financial for the same issues in this lawsuit. The full terms of the release can be found in the Settlement Agreement.

A Class Member under this settlement is anyone who fits the following definition:

All homeowners who purportedly entered into a Renew Financial Assessment Contract or Renovate America Assessment Contract with Los Angeles County between March 1, 2015, and March 31, 2018, where that assessment contract has been recorded as a lien against the homeowner’s real property.

If you are the heir of a homeowner who you believe meets the above definition, please contact the Settlement Administrator at 1-888-825-1218 or info@PACELASettlement.com.

Yes, CaliforniaFIRST (aka CalFIRST) and HERO financing were the names of programs providing financing under the PACE program. CalFIRST refers to PACE financing from Renew Financial; HERO refers to PACE financing from Renovate America Inc.

The exact amount each Class Member will receive will depend on how many claims are submitted by Class Members, the details of those claims, the amount the Court awards in attorneys' fees, other amounts a class member may already have received from another source related to his or her PACE assessment, and the costs of administering the settlement.

You have four options. You can stay in the settlement and submit a claim, you can opt out of the settlement, you can object to the settlement, or you can do nothing. This chart shows the effects of each option:

The deadline to submit a claim was June 13, 2024.

In a class action, the court appoints class representatives and lawyers to work on the case and represent the interests of all the class members. For this settlement, the Court has appointed the following individuals and lawyers.

Your lawyers: Public Counsel, Bet Tzedek, and Hogan Lovells US LLP. These are the lawyers who negotiated this settlement on your behalf.

If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

Lawyers' fees and costs will be paid from the Settlement Fund. You will not have to pay the lawyers directly. To date, your lawyers have not been paid any money for their work or the expenses that they have paid for the case. To pay for some of their time and risk in bringing the case without any guarantee of payment unless they were successful, your lawyers will request, as part of the final approval of the Settlement, that the Court approve a payment of no more than $2 Million total in attorneys’ fees including the reimbursement of court costs, out-of-pocket expenses, and the costs of settlement administration.

Lawyers' fees and expenses will only be awarded if approved by the Court as a fair and reasonable amount. You have the right to object to the lawyers' fees even if you think the settlement terms are fair.

Your lawyers will also ask the Court to approve a payment of $12,500 to each of the Class Representatives for the time and effort they contributed to the case. If approved by the Court, this will be paid from the Settlement Fund.

For each L.A. County PACE lien with Renew or Renovate you should submit a separate claim detailing your monthly debt and income. Start with the first PACE lien in time. Your monthly debt should include the monthly amount to pay the PACE lien you are claiming for, in addition to any monthly PACE lien amounts included in a previous claim.

Worked example:

Yesenia has two PACE liens: one from Renovate America in May 2017 and one from Renew Financial in October 2017. The property tax annual assessment for the Renovate Lien was for $6,000 per year (divided by 12, this created a monthly debt of $500). The property tax annual assessment for the Renew Lien was for $3,000 per year (divided by 12, this created an additional debt of $250 each month).

Yesenia’s other monthly debt expenses are: $2,000 for her mortgage, $250 minimum payments on her credit cards, a $500 auto loan, and student loan payments of $400 (totaling $3,150).

Yesenia’s monthly household income before taxes is $3,700.

On the first claim form for the Renovate lien, Yesenia’s monthly debt is $3,150 plus the $500 on the first PACE lien, giving a total monthly debt of $3,650. Her debt‑to‑income ratio is $3,650 divided by $3,700 income = .986 or 98.6%.

On the second claim form for the Renew lien, assuming Yesenia’s other monthly debt and income amounts have not changed between May 2017 and October 2017 (the dates of the two liens), Yesenia’s monthly debt is $3,150 plus the $500 on the first PACE lien plus $250 on the second PACE lien, giving a total monthly debt of $3,900. Her debt‑to‑income ratio is $3,900 divided by $3,700 income = 1.05 or over 100%.

The deadline to request exclusion was June 13, 2024.

The deadline to request exclusion was June 13, 2024.

The deadline to object was June 13, 2024.

If you did nothing, you will not get any money, but you will still be bound by the settlement and its “release” provisions. That means you will not be able to start, continue, or be part of any other lawsuit against Defendants County of Los Angeles; Renew Financial Holdings, Inc., a Delaware Corporation; and Renew Financial Corp. II, a Pennsylvania Corporation, about the issues in the case. Please see the settlement agreement, which can be found on the Important Documents page, for a full description of the claims and persons who will be released if the settlement is approved.

The notice is a summary of the proposed settlement. To get a copy of the settlement agreement or get answers to your questions:

• contact your lawyer (information below)
• visit the Important Documents page
• access the Court Electronic Records (LA Superior Court Case Summary) system online or by visiting the Clerk’s office of the Court (address below).