On March 20, 2019, in Frank v. Gaos, 586 U.S. ___
(2019), the United States Supreme Court sidestepped a novel
question regarding a cy pres class action settlement,
instead remanding the case back to the lower courts with
instructions to consider Article III standing issues in light of
the high court's 2016 decision in Spokeo, Inc. v.
Robins.1
In the class action context, cy pres refers to the
practice of distributing settlement funds to public interest or
charitable recipients whose work is determined to indirectly
benefit class members. Sometimes this is done with a portion of
settlement funds (that go unclaimed by class members). Sometimes
the cy pres award is the only cash payment (other than
fees and costs to counsel), on the theory that this comes as close
as possible ("cy près comme possible") to
awarding damages in a case that is not amenable to individual
relief. Federal courts—which must review any class action
settlement and find that it is "fair,
