Safeway Web Accessibility Settlement Agreement

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Safeway has agreed to make its website easier to use for people with disabilities. This post is the legal document that Safeway signed with nine of its blind customers. The website allows people to order groceries online and have them delivered to their homes. Safeway will use international standards to make sure its website works for everyone. Safeway will stop having a separate site for blind customers. Its main site will be designed for all users. Back to agreement

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This is the settlement agreement about the accessibility of Safeway’s online grocery delivery website. The company worked on this initiative in Structured Negotiations with individual customers with visual impairments in California and Washington State. The Safeway shoppers were represented by the Law Office of Lainey Feingold and Linda Dardarian of the Oakland, California civil rights firm Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho.

Safeway will be using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA as its web standard. When its grocery delivery site meets this standard, Safeway will remove a legacy separate site known as the “Access Site” that it had maintained.

SAFEWAY ECOMMERCE WEBPAGES AND MOBILE OPTIMIZED WEBPAGES ACCESSIBILITY SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT

This Settlement Agreement (hereinafter “Settlement Agreement”) is entered into as of the Effective Date, as defined below in Section 1.3, by and between the following parties: Ardis Bazyn, Don Brown, Cindy Flerman, Tom Foley, Marlaina Lieberg, Lillian Scaife, Rebecca Welz, Judy Wilkinson, and Perry Lou Wolfe as successor in interest to decedent Patricia LaFrance-Wolf (collectively referred to herein as “Claimants”) and Safeway Inc. (“Safeway”) for the purposes and on the terms specified herein, and operates in conjunction with the Confidential Addendum to this Settlement Agreement (together which form the “Full Agreement”). Claimants and Safeway are at times referred to collectively herein as “the Parties.”

RECITALS

This Settlement Agreement is based on the following facts:

A.
Safeway operates retail stores in California, Washington, and other states across the United States, including stores operating under the following names: Safeway, Vons, Pavilions, Randalls, Tom Thumb, and Carrs stores. Through certain Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Mobile Optimized Webpages, Safeway offers its Safeway, Vons and Pavilions customers information about Safeway’s products along with the ability to purchase products for delivery to their homes or places of business in some geographic areas.
B.
Claimants Ardis Bazyn, Don Brown, Cindy Flerman, Tom Foley, Lillian Scaife, Rebecca Welz, and Judy Wilkinson are residents of California, Persons with a Visual Impairment, and persons with a disability within the meaning of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and the laws of the State of California. Claimant Perry Lou Wolf is the successor in interest to decedent Patricia LaFrance-Wolfe, who, prior to her death, was a resident of California, a Person with a Visual Impairment, and person with a disability within the meaning of the Americans with Disabilities Act (“ADA”) and the laws of the State of California. Claimant Marlaina Lieberg is a resident of the State of Washington, a Person with a Visual Impairment, and a person with a disability within the meaning of the ADA and the laws of the State of Washington. Claimants have shopped and continue to shop and obtain information through Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages.
C.
A dispute has arisen between Claimants and Safeway concerning the extent to which Safeway is legally obligated to ensure that the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages as defined below are accessible to Persons with Visual Impairments (“the Dispute”).
D.
On or about September 23, 2011, Claimants notified Safeway about the Dispute and offered to engage in Structured Negotiations, in lieu of litigation, to resolve the Dispute. In December, 2011, the Parties executed a Structured Negotiations Agreement to protect the interests of all Parties during those negotiations. Since executing that agreement, the Parties have engaged in good faith negotiations and shared relevant information regarding the Dispute. The Parties now enter into this Settlement Agreement in order to resolve the Dispute and to avoid the burden, expense, and risk of potential litigation.
E.
By entering into this Settlement Agreement, Safeway does not admit, and specifically denies, that Safeway eCommerce Webpages and/or Safeway Mobile Optimized webpages are subject to, or that Safeway has in any way violated or failed to comply with any provisions of the ADA, any applicable laws of any state relating to accessibility for Persons with Visual Impairments, any regulations or guidelines promulgated pursuant to those statutes, or any other applicable laws, regulations, or legal requirements (“Access Laws”). Neither this Settlement Agreement, nor any of its terms or provisions, nor any of the negotiations connected with it, shall be construed as an admission, confirmation or concession by Safeway of any such violation or failure to comply with any applicable law, or that the ADA or any of the other laws relating to accessibility and/or use applies to Safeway eCommerce Webpages and/or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages. Safeway further does not admit, and specifically denies any liability to any of the Claimants, collectively or individually, or to any other person or entity under any law, including without limitation, Access Laws, with respect to Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages. Safeway also denies that Safeway eCommerce Webpages and/or, Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages as previously or currently configured were not or are not in compliance with any applicable law. This Settlement Agreement and its terms and provisions shall not be offered or received as evidence for any purpose whatsoever against Safeway in any action or proceeding, other than a proceeding to enforce the terms of this Settlement Agreement.
F.
The Parties understand and acknowledge that certain obligations to be performed by Safeway hereunder may be dependent on or conditioned upon Claimants’ performing their individual and collective obligations as set forth herein. Therefore, the Parties agree that Safeway shall not be deemed in default of any term of this Settlement Agreement if such potential default results from, arises out of or is consequent to, in whole or in part, Claimants’ failure to perform their respective obligations hereunder.

NOW, THEREFORE, the Parties hereby agree to the following provisions:

1. Definitions.

As used in this Settlement Agreement, the following terms shall have the meanings ascribed to them as defined below:

1.1.
Accessible PDF means a PDF document that satisfies WCAG 2.0 Conformance Level AA Success Criteria.
1.2.
Claimants’ Counsel means Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho and the Law Office of Lainey Feingold, and the attorneys practicing law therein.
1.3.
Effective Date means December 6, 2013.
1.4.
Person(s) with a Visual Impairment means any person who has a physical, mental, or sensory impairment that substantially limits him or her in the major life activity of seeing.
1.5.
Reasonable Efforts means, with respect to a given goal or obligation, the efforts that a reasonable person in Safeway’s position would use to achieve that goal or obligation. Any disagreement by the Parties as to whether Safeway has used Reasonable Efforts as provided for under this Agreement shall be subject to the dispute resolution procedures set forth in Section 9 of this Agreement.
1.6.
Safeway eCommerce Webpages means the grocery shopping/eCommerce webpages owned and operated by Safeway that allow its customers to obtain information about Safeway’s products and purchase products on-line for delivery to their homes or places of business in some geographic areas. Safeway eCommerce Webpages refers to the following webpages: all webpages found on shop.safeway.com as well as the following webpages found on www.safeway.com: “Just for U” (including digital coupons, personalized deals, Your Club specials, and savings lists); Store Weekly Specials; the Safeway Club Card (including Card Programs and Updating Club Card Information); My Account; and the Safeway.com home page.
1.7.
Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages refers to the webpages found on sites such as mobile.safeway.com or m.safeway.com, which allow the streamlined presentation of certain Safeway eCommerce webpages on smart-phones and other mobile devices.
1.8.
Third-Party Content means web content that is generated by a third party and not owned, coded, managed, operated by Safeway, or hosted on the Safeway eCommerce Webpages or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages.

2. Term.

The term of this Settlement Agreement shall commence as of the Effective Date and remain in effect through December 5, 2014.

3. Website Accessibility Provisions.

3.1.
Safeway will use Reasonable Efforts to ensure that Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages substantially comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Conformance Level AA Success Criteria (“Access Standard”), by April 15, 2014 (“Compliance Date”). The Parties acknowledge that some WCAG Conformance Level AA Success Criteria address features or design elements that may not be used on Safeway eCommerce Webpages or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages, and in such circumstances compliance with those Success Criteria will not be required.
3.2. CAPTCHAs.
Safeway currently does not utilize any Completely Automated Public Turing Test to Tell Computers and Humans Apart or similar visual or textual Turing or reverse-Turing verification test (referred herein as “CAPTCHA”) on any Safeway eCommerce Webpages or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages. If Safeway chooses to utilize CAPTCHAs in the future on any Safeway eCommerce Webpages or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages it will use Reasonable Efforts to ensure the CAPTCHA or an alternative security measure is usable by and accessible to Persons with Visual Impairments.
3.3. PDF Documents on the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages.
Safeway will use Reasonable Efforts to ensure that all PDF documents posted on the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages are Accessible PDFs. If a PDF document is not an Accessible PDF document, Safeway will also post an html version of the information contained in the PDF document. Upon posting the html version of the PDF document, Safeway shall be deemed to have met this requirement for that PDF document.
3.4. Third-Party Content.
Safeway’s only obligations under this Settlement Agreement with respect to Third-Party Content are the following:
3.4.1. If Claimants through Claimants’ Counsel bring to Safeway’s attention that any Third-Party Content on Safeway eCommerce Webpages or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages is not in substantial compliance with the Access Standard, Safeway will provide contact information about the vendor of the Third-Party content to Claimants’ Counsel so that Claimants and Claimants’ Counsel can raise the issue directly with the vendor. Safeway will also notify the vendor as soon as practicable that a complaint regarding accessibility by Person(s) with a Visual Impairment of the vendor’s Third-Party Content has been received. Safeway will urge that the vendor adhere with the Access Standard as soon as practicable and in any event at the next contractual opportunity, or at the next contractual opportunity Safeway will use Reasonable Efforts to select an alternative vendor, if available, who is acceptable to Safeway and can meet the Access Standard. In fulfilling its obligations under this Section 3.4.1, Safeway will not be required to violate any confidentiality or non-disclosure agreements for any purpose or to terminate an existing Third-Party Content contract prior to its expiration date.
3.4.2. New Third-Party Content After the Effective Date. If, on or after the Effective Date, Safeway issues requests for proposals for development or inclusion of Third-Party Content on Safeway eCommerce Webpages or Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages, or if Safeway extends contracts for Third-Party Content existing as of the Effective Date, Safeway will include compliance with the Access Standard as a criterion to be considered in all such requests for proposals. Safeway will use Reasonable Efforts to select Third-Party vendors who can meet the Access Standard while meeting Safeway’s other requirements.
3.5. Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages Accessibility Policy.
3.5.1. Safeway will develop an internal website accessibility policy that, at a minimum, will include (i) a statement of the Access Standard and Safeway’s commitment to use it; (ii) a statement of Safeway’s commitment to integrate accessibility into Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages as part of the development, implementation and maintenance of its Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages; (iii) a designated person(s) responsible for policy implementation and implementation of this Settlement Agreement; and (iv) a statement of Safeway’s goal that any content developed or provided by Third Party vendors also meet the Access Standard.
3.5.2. Safeway will provide Claimants with a draft of the website accessibility policy for their review prior to its being finalized. Claimants will provide their feedback on the draft policy within fifteen (15) days of receipt, and Safeway will consider the feedback provided by Claimants in good faith. If Claimants do not provide such feedback as set forth herein, it shall be deemed as Claimants’ approval of such policy.
3.6. Transition From and Removal of Safeway “Access Site.”
Pursuant to the terms of this Section 3.6, Safeway will remove from the Internet the separate site sometimes known or referred to as the “Access Site”, available as of the Effective Date at https://shop.safeway.com/access/.
3.6.1. On a date after the Compliance Date and at least 60 days before the Access Site is removed by Safeway, Safeway will post a notice on the Access Site that shall include the following information: (i) the date that the site will be removed; (ii) a statement that the Access Site is being removed because the Safeway eCommerce Webpages have been redesigned to meet the Access Standard; (iii) a link to the homepage of the Safeway eCommerce Webpages; (iv) a statement regarding the existence of the Accessibility Information Page and how to locate it; and (v) the Safeway toll-free customer service telephone number.
3.6.2. The notice described in Section 3.6.1 will appear on the main/first page of the Access Site prior to Sign In and on the main/first page following Sign In.
3.6.3. In addition to the notice described in Section 3.6.1, Safeway will send an email to all Safeway customers who have ordered through the Access Site for whom it has email addresses, which includes the content set forth in the notice. The email will be sent within ten (10) days of the notice being posted pursuant to Section 3.6.1 and the content of the email will be provided in a way so that it is accessible to People with Visual Impairments.
3.6.4. At least ten (10) days prior to the date the Notice is posted pursuant to Section 3.6.1, Safeway will provide a copy of the text of the Notice, and the text of the email as described in Section 3.6.3, to Claimants. Safeway will accept feedback from Claimants regarding the text, and give good faith consideration to feedback that is consistent with this Agreement and that is provided within five (5) days of receipt of the Notice.

4. Accessibility Consultant and Usability Testing.

4.1. Accessibility Consultant.
During the term of this Settlement Agreement, Safeway shall retain an outside consultant to assist, as Safeway deems in good faith to be appropriate, the developers of Safeway’s eCommerce Webpages and, Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages in substantially complying with the Access Standard as required by this Settlement Agreement.
4.2. Usability Testing.
4.2.1. Usability Testing of Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages on or Before Compliance Date. At least once on or before the Compliance Date set forth in Section 3.1, Claimants will test the accessibility and usability of Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages, respectively.
4.2.2. Claimant Feedback on Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages After Compliance Date. Throughout the term of this Settlement Agreement, Safeway will accept feedback from Claimants regarding the accessibility and usability of the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages.
4.2.3. Safeway will give good faith consideration to all usability testing results and other feedback (collectively “feedback”) provided pursuant to Section 4.2.1-4.2.2 that is consistent with the terms of this Settlement Agreement, and will notify the Claimants about its response to the applicable feedback.

5. Accessibility Information Page on the Safeway eCommerce Webpages.

5.1.
No later than January 6, 2014, Safeway will post an Accessibility Information Page or Pages on the Safeway eCommerce Websites. The Page(s) will include: (i) a statement of Safeway’s commitment to the Access Standard for the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages; (ii) a summary of Safeway’s Webpages Accessibility Policy; and (iii) a web-based (or e-mail) and telephone-based method for Persons with Visual Impairments to contact Safeway regarding accessibility concerns.
5.2.
Safeway will provide Claimants with a draft of the Accessibility Information Page(s) prior to their being finalized. Claimants will provide their feedback on this information within fifteen (15) days of receipt, and Safeway will consider the feedback provided by Claimants in good faith. If Claimants do not provide feedback as set forth herein, it shall be deemed Claimants’ approval of the Accessibility Information Page(s). The Accessibility Information Page(s) will, at a minimum, be available from a link on the footer of the Home Page(s) of the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and all pages where the footer appears. It will also be listed as a help topic on all Safeway Help pages.

6. Instruction of Safeway Personnel.

To ensure effective implementation of this Settlement Agreement, Safeway will provide appropriate instructional material to designated staff as set forth herein.

6.1. Technical Support Telephone Staff.
Safeway maintains a call center that customers can contact in order to obtain information about, and possible assistance in utilizing, Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages, among other matters. Safeway will provide appropriate instructional material to its call center staff concerning technical support and accessibility issues involving Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages regarding: (i) the existence and content of the Website Accessibility Policy; (ii) the existence and content of the Accessibility Information Page; and (iii) general information for accessing and navigating Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages by Persons with Visual Impairments. Safeway call center staff will also be instructed on how, and to whom, to escalate customer inquiries that require additional knowledge or assistance beyond that generally available to the call center staff.
6.2. Web Development and Mobile Optimized Websites Development Staff.
Safeway will provide appropriate information and instruction to employees who are involved in eCommerce content generation and any development staff responsible to enable them to take Reasonable Efforts to ensure that the Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages meet the Access Standard as provided for in this Agreement. Safeway will also provide appropriate information and instruction to all such staff regarding the terms of the Website Accessibility Policy.
6.3.
Safeway will provide refresher information as reasonably necessary and will provide appropriate information and instruction to new staff under Sections 6.1 and 6.2.
6.4.
Safeway will provide Claimants with a copy of the instructional material to be provided to its staff under this Section prior to its finalization. Review and distribution of the proprietary instructional material is to be limited to Claimants and their attorneys only for purposes of this dispute, and may not be further disclosed by Claimants and/or their attorneys. All instructional material will be returned to Safeway upon Safeway’s reasonable request therefor. Safeway will consider the feedback provided by Claimants and use good faith efforts to incorporate applicable feedback provided that such feedback is submitted in a timely manner and is consistent with this Agreement. The details of the instructional material will be in the sole discretion of Safeway. Preparation and distribution of the instructional material pursuant to this Section will occur in a timely manner to facilitate effective implementation of the Settlement Agreement.

7. Joint Press Release.

The Parties will mutually agree on a joint press release to be issued by Safeway on or around the Effective Date. The Parties agree not to issue any other press release related to this Settlement Agreement, or the obligations to be undertaken by Safeway under this Agreement, except as described in this Section. Any public statements by the Parties regarding the terms of this Settlement Agreement shall be consistent with the Joint Press Release.

8. Meetings Regarding this Settlement Agreement.

8.1.
On a mutually agreed upon date semi-annually during the term of this Settlement Agreement, the Parties will meet by telephone to discuss any issue concerning implementation of this Settlement Agreement, and any other accessibility issue concerning Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages that any Party would like to discuss. At least ten (10) days prior to the meeting, the Parties will also submit to the other in writing a complete list of the issues that they would like to discuss at the meeting.
8.2.
During the telephone meetings referenced in Section 8.1 above, the Parties will discuss any feedback that Claimants may have about the accessibility or usability of any Mobile Applications (“Mobile Apps”) that Safeway may then be offering.

9. Procedures in the Event of Disputes.

9.1. Enforcement of Safeway eCommerce Webpages and Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages, Provisions.
9.1.1. The procedures set forth in Sections 9.1.2 – 9.1.5 must be exhausted in the event that (i) Claimants allege that Safeway has failed to meet its obligations pursuant to Section 3 of this Agreement, or (ii) Safeway alleges that there is a Success Criteria of WCAG 2.0 Conformance Level AA with which it cannot substantially comply as set forth herein. There will be no breach of this Settlement Agreement by Safeway in connection with such allegations until the following procedures have been exhausted.
9.1.2. Claimants will notify Safeway in writing if they believe there is a page or a posted document on Safeway’s eCommerce Webpages, or Safeway’s Mobile Optimized Webpages that does not meet the Access Standard. Safeway will notify Claimants if it believes there is a Success Criteria with which it cannot substantially comply hereunder.
9.1.3. Within thirty (30) days of either Party receiving notice as described in Section 9.1.2, the other Party will respond to the Notice. Within ten (10) days of receipt of the response, the Parties will meet by telephone in an attempt to informally resolve the issue. At Claimants’ request, the Accessibility Consultant referenced in Section 4.1 will provide explanation of the issue and information as to whether it is possible, and if so what would be required, for the webpage or document on Safeway eCommerce Webpages or the Safeway Mobile Optimized Webpages at issue to satisfy WCAG 2.0 Level AA Success Criteria.
9.1.4. If the issue remains unresolved within thirty (30) days of the telephone meeting, Safeway will retain a mutually agreed upon independent third party with web accessibility expertise (other than the Accessibility Consultant) to provide a written opinion on the issue within thirty (30) days. There will be no breach of this Agreement unless the consultant determines that:
9.1.4.1. In regard to notice from Claimants, the challenged webpage, posted document, mobile optimized webpage, or portion thereof, (a) does not substantially comply with the standards set forth in this Agreement; and (b) Safeway fails to remedy the issue within a reasonable period of time of not less than sixty (60) days of receiving the accessibility consultant’s opinion; or
9.1.4.2. In regards to a notice from Safeway, Safeway can substantially comply with a Success Criteria by using Reasonable Efforts, and Safeway fails to remedy the issue within a reasonable period of time of not less than sixty (60) days of receiving the accessibility consultant’s opinion.
9.1.5. Should the Parties thereafter have a dispute regarding an issue raised in a notice given under Section 9.1.2, the dispute shall be handled pursuant to the procedures set forth in Sections 9.2-9.6, below.
9.2. Notice of Non-Compliance.
If a party believes that any other party has not complied with any provision of the Full Agreement (including Sections 3 or 4, after exhausting the procedures set forth in Section 9.1), that party shall provide the other party with Notice of Non-Compliance containing the following information: (i) the alleged act of non-compliance; (ii) a reference to the specific provision(s) of the Settlement Agreement or Confidential Addendum that are involved; (iii) a statement of the remedial action sought by the initiating party; and (iv) a brief statement of the specific facts, circumstances and legal argument supporting the position of the initiating party.
9.3. Response.
Within forty-five (45) days of receipt of a Notice provided pursuant to Section 9.2, the non-initiating party shall respond to the initiating party in writing.
9.4. Meet and Confer.
Within two (2) weeks after the response described above, the Parties shall informally meet and confer and attempt to resolve the issues raised in the Notice.
9.5. Submission to Mediation.
If the matters raised in a Notice provided pursuant to 9.1 are not resolved within forty-five (45) days of the initial meet and confer required by Section 9.4, either party may submit the unresolved matters to nonbinding mediation before a mediator affiliated with Judicial Arbitration & Mediation Services (“JAMS”), or such other mediator as the Parties may jointly designate.
9.6. Submission to Arbitration.
If the dispute is not resolved in mediation, the Parties then will submit the matter for binding arbitration before an arbitrator affiliated with JAMS. The arbitration hearing shall be conducted at a mutually convenient location and pursuant to JAMS Streamlined Arbitration Rules and Procedures. Those Rules will be modified as necessary to ensure that the hearing is held as soon as practicable after the submission to arbitration, and that a written decision on the matter is rendered within sixty (60) days of the last hearing date. The award of the arbitrator will be enforceable in a court of competent jurisdiction located in Northern California.
9.7. Time Periods.
Any of the time periods set forth in Sections 9.1 to 9.6 may be extended by mutual agreement of the Parties.

10. Notice or Communication to Parties.

Any notice or communication required or permitted to be given to the Parties hereunder shall be given in writing by e-mail and by overnight express mail or United States first class mail, addressed as follows:

To: Claimants:
Linda M. Dardarian
c/o Goldstein, Borgen, Dardarian & Ho
300 Lakeside Drive, Suite 1000
Oakland, CA 94612
[email address omitted]

Lainey Feingold
Law Office of Lainey Feingold
[address omitted]
[email address omitted]

To: Safeway:
John Calvert
Director – Digital Product Management & Production
5858 Stoneridge Mall Road
Pleasanton, CA 94588

Philip Ross
Littler Mendelson
650 California Street, 20th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94108
[email address omitted]

11. Modification in Writing.

No modification of this Settlement Agreement shall be effective unless in writing and signed by authorized representatives of all Parties.

12. No Other Representations.

Each party to this Settlement Agreement warrants that he, she or it is acting upon his, her or its independent judgment and upon the advice of his, her or its own counsel and not in reliance upon any warranty or representation, express or implied, of any nature or kind by any other party, other than the warranties and representations expressly made in this Settlement Agreement.

13. Settlement Agreement Has Been Read.

This Settlement Agreement has been carefully read by each of the Parties, and its contents are known and understood by each of the Parties. This Settlement Agreement is signed freely by each party executing it.

14. No Assignment.

No Party to this Settlement Agreement has heretofore assigned, transferred or granted, or shall assign, transfer or grant, any of the claims, demands or cause or causes of action, including the Dispute, disposed of by this Settlement Agreement. Any such purported assignment or transfer by any Party shall be null and void.

15. Agreement Binding on Assigns and Successors.

This Settlement Agreement shall bind any permitted assigns and successors of the Parties.

16. No Third-Party Beneficiaries.

This Settlement Agreement is for the benefit of the Parties only, and no other person or entity, including without limitation, Claimants’ respective successors and assigns, shall be entitled to any benefits under or on account of this Settlement Agreement, or shall have any right, interest or claim under this Settlement Agreement, to enforce against Safeway, or any of its successors or assigns, any provision hereof. The Parties specifically intend that there be no third-party beneficiaries to this Settlement Agreement.

17. Force Majeure.

The performance of the Safeway under this Settlement Agreement shall be excused during the period and to the extent that such performance is rendered impossible, impracticable or unduly burdensome due to acts of God, strikes or lockouts, unavailability of parts, equipment or materials through normal supply sources, security threat, or similar cause beyond Safeway’s reasonable control. If Safeway seeks to invoke this section as the result of an event of force majeure, it shall notify Claimants in writing as soon as reasonably possible, specifying the particular action(s) that could not be performed and the specific reason for non-performance. Claimants’ Counsel and Safeway will thereafter meet and confer regarding an alternative schedule for completion of the action that could not be performed, or an alternative action. Any dispute regarding the applicability of this section, or any future action to be taken, that remains after the meet and confer session will be handled as a dispute pursuant to Section 9 of this Settlement Agreement.

18. No Admission of Liability.

In entering into this Settlement Agreement, Safeway does not admit, and specifically denies, that it has violated or failed to comply with any applicable laws, including without limitation, any Access Laws.

19. Authority.

The persons executing this Settlement Agreement each represent and warrant that he or she has the authority to enter into this Settlement Agreement, and to resolve the matters set forth therein, on behalf of the party for whom he or she is executing this Settlement Agreement, and that no further approval is necessary in order for this Settlement Agreement to be binding on the party for whom he or she is executing.

20. Integrated Agreement.

This Settlement Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between the Parties relating to the subject matters addressed therein and supersedes any prior agreements or understandings between them relating to the subject matter hereof. This Settlement Agreement may not be modified or amended unless such modifications or amendment is agreed in writing by authorized representatives of the Parties.

21. Rules of Construction.

Each party and his, her, or its legal counsel have reviewed and participated in the drafting of this Settlement Agreement; and any rule of construction to the effect that ambiguities are construed against the drafting party shall not apply in the interpretation or construction of this Settlement Agreement. Section titles used herein are intended for reference purposes only and are not to be construed as part of this Settlement Agreement. The Recitals are integral to the construction and interpretation of this Settlement Agreement and are therefore incorporated into this Settlement Agreement in their entirety.

22. Governing Law.

The interpretation and enforcement of this Settlement Agreement shall be governed by the laws of the State of California.

23. Multiple Originals/Execution in Counterparts.

Each party and Claimants’ Counsel shall sign one (1) original copy of this Settlement Agreement. This Settlement Agreement may be executed in counterparts and facsimile and PDF signatures shall be accepted as original but all of which shall constitute one and the same instrument.

PARTIES

  • SAFEWAY INC.
    By: John Gray

CLAIMANTS

  • By: Ardis Bazyn
  • By: Don Brown
  • By: Cindy Flerman
  • By: Tom Foley
  • By: Marlaina Lieberg
  • By: Lillian Scaife
  • By: Rebecca Welz
  • By: Judy Wilkinson
  • By: Perry Lou Wolfe as successor in interest to decedent Patricia LaFrance-Wolfe

APPROVED AS TO FORM:

  • LITTLER MENDELSON
    By: Philip L. Ross, Esq., Attorney for Safeway Inc.
  • GOLDSTEIN, BORGEN, DARDARIAN & HO
    By: Linda M. Dardarian, Esq., Attorney for Claimants
  • LAW OFFICE OF LAINEY FEINGOLD
    By: Lainey Feingold, Esq., Attorney for Claimants