Common use of Common Fund Clause in Contracts

Common Fund. 2.1 The Parties have agreed to a Common Fund settlement with a maximum payment by Merck of up to $23 million (the "Settlement Amount") for claims made for out-of-pocket expenditures by members of the Class ("Settlement Class") and certain other payment obligations set forth below. 2.2 All of Merck's payment obligations under the Settlement Agreement will be made from the Common Fund and counted against the Settlement Amount. Under no circumstances shall Merck be required to pay into the Common Fund an amount greater than $23 million pursuant to this Agreement. 2.3 Subject to all of the terms of this Agreement, each member of the Settlement Class may obtain recovery of his/her out-of-pocket expenditures for the purchase of Vioxx for personal or family use and up to seventy-five dollars ($75.00) in the aggregate for his/her out-of-pocket costs and losses in connection with any and all Post-Withdrawal Medical Consultations (i.e., costs and losses due to such medical consultation and Vioxx-related diagnostic testing) by submitting a valid claim pursuant to the provisions of Section 11 below. 2.4 Payment will be made only for amounts for which proof of expenditures are presented to the Claims Administrator in accordance with Section 11 below. The Claims Administrator will determine the adequacy of the proof submitted in support of a claim. Only amounts paid by the Class Member submitting a claim (and not any amounts paid or reimbursed by third-party payors or others) will be reimbursed to a Class Member under the Settlement. Because class members will be entitled to payments on the basis of actual out-of-pocket expenditures or costs and losses about which they must submit proof under the terms of this Agreement, there is no minimum payment, except as otherwise provided in Section 11.2.1. 2.5 All reasonable attorneys' fees and expenses incurred in connection with the litigation of the consumer claims and related putative consumer class action cases involving Vioxx, the expenses incurred in providing the Court-approved notice to the Class of the proposed settlement, and the reasonable administrative expenses of the Claims Administrator incurred in connection with the operation of the Settlement, including providing notice to the class, creating and maintaining a class settlement website, processing requests for exclusion from the Class, and the processing of claims and other administration expenses of the Settlement, as approved by the Court, will be paid from the Common Fund and will be counted toward the Settlement Amount. 2.6 Other than to pay the costs of the Claims Administrator for the costs of notice and administration as approved by the Court or to refund Merck in the event this Settlement is not approved or is terminated, no other disbursements shall be made from the Common Fund prior to (i) the Judgment becoming Final, (ii) the Effective Date of this Settlement Agreement being reached, and (iii) the Claim Filing Deadline has passed and all cure periods have expired and all claim audits by the Claim Administrator have been completed. 2.7 If the aggregate amount of valid claims filed by Class Members, plus the attorneys' fees and expenses awarded by the Court, plus the notice and administration costs, is more than the Settlement Amount, the Claim Administrator shall reduce proportionately each settlement payment to each Class Member sufficient to avoid a shortfall in the Common Fund.