Jefferson County

Birmingham, AL: (Apr-10-07) A class action lawsuit stemmed from a March 2005 federal court lawsuit representing hundreds of people whose property was sold by the county for delinquent taxes and who have not collected refunds of amounts paid for their property in excess of what they owed. In a settlement reached, Jefferson County officials set aside $32 million for the settlement, but said additional claims have been filed and could exhaust the account before all involved have had an opportunity to make their claims. The county has kept the excess money in trust, earning interest, and has a pool from which payments are set aside for the proposed settlement class, known as the Winston class for an original plaintiff, Raymond Winston. [BIRMINGHAM NEWS: PROPERTY TAX SETTLEMENT]