Published
August 20, 2026
This settlement resolves claims that Talkdesk's Washington job postings left out the wage scale or salary range the state requires employers to publish. If you applied for a Talkdesk job in Washington on or after January 1, 2023, you can file a claim by October 13, 2026 for an estimated $1,718 — one equal share of a fund worth between $1,828,288 and $2,785,000.
Current Status
Claims are open. The deadline to submit a Claim Form is October 13, 2026, whether you file online or mail or email a paper form postmarked by that date. The same date is the deadline to opt out or to object. The court has not yet decided whether to approve the settlement: King County Superior Court granted preliminary approval on June 17, 2026, and the final approval hearing is set for November 20, 2026 at 8:30 a.m. before Judge Janet Helson. No payments have been issued and no payment date has been announced — the Notice says checks go out after final approval and after any appeals and other reviews are complete. If you received a notice with a LoginID and PIN, the action to take now is to file before October 13.
Status
Claims Open
Claim Deadline
October 13, 2026
Online or postmarked by this date · same date to opt out or object
Estimated Payout
About $1,718
Estimate · equal share of the Net Settlement Fund, capped at $5,000
Proof Required
Yes
LoginID and PIN from your notice required to file online · no receipts or documentation
What Changed Recently?
The claim window opened this summer. King County Superior Court granted preliminary approval on June 17, 2026, provisionally certified the settlement class, and authorized the settlement administrator, Simpluris, to issue the notice and Claim Form. The same order struck the trial date that had been set for July 27, 2026 and stayed the rest of the case while the settlement is administered.The underlying case is John Milito v. Talkdesk, Inc., Case No. 25-2-21719-1 SEA, filed in King County Superior Court in Washington on July 25, 2025. The complaint alleges that Talkdesk violated RCW 49.58.110, the job-posting provision of Washington's Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, by running postings for open Washington positions that did not disclose the wage scale or salary range being offered. That statute requires employers with 15 or more employees to include pay and benefit information in job advertisements.
Talkdesk denies the allegations and denies that it is or can be held liable for the claims in the lawsuit. It also denies that the claims would have been appropriate for class certification absent a settlement. The Notice states the court has made no determination on the merits, and the preliminary approval order states that the settlement is not to be read as an admission of liability or wrongdoing. The parties agreed to settle to avoid the uncertainty, risk, and expense of continued litigation.
Who Qualifies?
The settlement class covers everyone who, from January 1, 2023 through July 26, 2025, applied for a job opening with Talkdesk through a posting on Talkdesk's website or its authorized third-party recruiting channels, where the posting did not disclose a wage scale or salary range for the hired applicant, and who meets either of two location tests.The first test covers anyone who applied from any location for a position that required the successful candidate to work in person in Washington State. The second covers Washington-based applicants who applied for a job opening where Washington was identified as one of the locations the successful candidate could work from. The second branch matters for remote roles: a Washington resident who applied to a remote-friendly Talkdesk posting that listed Washington among its work locations is inside the class even though the job was never tied to a Washington office.
You did not need to be hired, interviewed, or contacted. The claim is about the posting, not the outcome of the application. Talkdesk identified roughly 1,114 Class Members from its own records, so the practical test is whether a notice was sent to you. If you are unsure, the settlement website's contact page is the route to ask the administrator.
How Much Can You Get?
Talkdesk agreed to pay a Minimum Settlement Fund of $1,828,288 and a Maximum Settlement Fund of $2,785,000, with the amount actually owed set by how many Class Members file valid claims. Everyone who files a timely, valid claim receives an equal share of the Net Settlement Fund — what is left after the court-approved deductions described below. There are no tiers and no documented-loss category; every valid claim is worth the same as every other one.The Settlement Agreement puts the estimated minimum payment at approximately $1,718 per valid claim, and caps any single share at $5,000. Your own estimated amount is printed on the Claim Form that came with your notice. Both figures are estimates rather than guaranteed amounts.
The way the two fund amounts interact is unusual and worth understanding. If claims come in at or below roughly half the class — 557 people — Talkdesk pays the minimum $1,828,288, and that fixed pot is divided among however few people filed, so each share is larger. For every valid claim beyond 557, the Net Settlement Fund increases by another $1,718, up to the $2,785,000 ceiling. In other words, a heavy claim rate does not dilute anyone's share; a light one raises it, until the $5,000 per-person cap stops it. Money that would push a share past $5,000, and any funds left over if fewer than half the class files, goes to the Legal Foundation of Washington rather than back to Talkdesk.
Three deductions come out of the fund before it is divided. Class Counsel will ask the court to approve $821,575 in attorneys' fees, plus costs and expenses of up to $5,000. Class Counsel will also request a $20,000 service award for the class representative. Settlement administration costs are capped at $25,000, and the agreement provides that if administration comes in under that cap the difference is distributed to Participating Class Members. Talkdesk has agreed not to oppose the fee and service-award requests, but the court decides the amounts and may award less.
On that point, the preliminary approval order does something most orders do not. Judge Helson preliminarily approved the $821,575 fee figure but expressly reserved a finding on whether it is reasonable, noting that the amount is 29.5 percent of the maximum fund but 44.9 percent of the minimum fund. The order lists the court's reasons: counsel's declaration referenced hours worked without giving a number the court could use for a lodestar cross-check; the case appears to have resolved early without formal discovery; the declaration described a 33 to 40 percent contingency arrangement and cited 29.5 to 33.3 percent as a standard approved range, neither of which matches 44.9 percent; and the court noted that the volume of similar post-Branson Washington cases may spread the contingency risk that fee requests usually rest on. The order directs that if counsel continues to seek more than 29.5 percent of the actual recovery, they must submit lodestar information before the final approval hearing. Because fees come out of the same fund the class is paid from, a smaller award would leave more to divide.
Payments are made by mailed check. The Notice states that all payments expire and become void 120 calendar days after the date of issuance, and it asks Class Members to tell the administrator about any address or phone number change so the check reaches them. The Settlement Agreement also lets a Participating Class Member submit an IRS Form W-9 with the claim, and provides that a participant who does not is subject to initial withholding before the payment is issued.
What Proof or Notice ID Is Required?
No receipts, pay stubs, or application records are required — but proof is still required in the sense that matters. Filing online requires a LoginID and a PIN, both printed on the notice sent to you. Under OCA's standard, an administrator-issued credential that gates the claim counts as proof, because a person who never received the notice or no longer has it cannot file without first contacting the administrator.The Claim Form itself asks for identity and contact information rather than evidence of loss, and it is signed under penalty of perjury under Washington law. All claims are subject to a verification process, and the Notice says the administrator may request additional information before treating a claim as valid.
If you cannot locate your LoginID and PIN, the settlement website's contact page explains how to ask the administrator to retrieve them using your full name and mailing address, and a paper Claim Form can be submitted by mail or email instead of using the online portal.
What Is the Deadline?
October 13, 2026 governs all three options, which is unusual — on most settlements the opt-out and objection deadlines land well before the claim deadline.Claim Forms must be submitted online, or mailed or emailed and postmarked, on or before October 13, 2026. The Notice gives only the date, with no cutoff time or timezone for online submissions, so treat the date itself as the limit. The Settlement Agreement adds one wrinkle worth knowing: if a notice came back undeliverable and was re-mailed to you, you get the greater of the time left in the original window or 30 days from the re-mailing.
Requests for exclusion must be mailed to the administrator and postmarked no later than October 13, 2026. The Notice is specific that you cannot opt out by phone or email, that each person must submit their own request, and that group requests are not permitted. A valid request needs your full name, your address, a statement that you want to be excluded from the settlement in this case, and your signature and the date signed.
Objections must be filed with King County Superior Court by October 13, 2026, with copies mailed to both Class Counsel and Talkdesk's counsel, postmarked by the same date. A valid objection has to include your contact information, the case name and number, your reasons for objecting, your attorney's name and address if you have one, whether you or your attorney intend to appear at the hearing, a list of every other proposed class action settlement you have objected to in the last three years by case name, court, and docket number, and your signature and date.
How Do You Take Action?
File online at the official settlement website, EPOA Settlement TDI, using the LoginID and PIN from your notice. The Claim Form can also be completed on paper and returned to the administrator by mail or email; the administrator can supply a copy on request through the site's contact page.The Notice, Claim Form, Settlement Agreement, and court filings are posted on the settlement website's Important Documents page. Paragraph 18 of the Settlement Agreement is the release, and it is broad: it covers the claims in the complaint and claims that could have been asserted on the same facts, including any claim arising out of the job-posting and pay-transparency requirements of the Equal Pay and Opportunities Act, and any attendant claims for interest, liquidated damages, statutory damages, and fees. It also reaches beyond Talkdesk itself to its corporate affiliates and to any third party that helped create, publish, process, or host the job postings. Staying in the class means giving those up, whether or not you file a claim.
One point worth knowing before you decide: doing nothing is the worst of the three options. You stay bound by the release either way, so a Class Member who never files gives up the claims and receives nothing for them.
What Happens Next?
The next milestone is the final approval hearing on November 20, 2026 at 8:30 a.m. before Judge Janet Helson at the King County Courthouse in Seattle, Washington. The Notice publishes a videoconference link for Class Members who want to attend remotely. At the hearing the court will decide whether the settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and will rule on the fee, cost, and service-award requests along with any objections.The Notice cautions that the hearing date and time may change by court order, and that any change will be posted on the settlement website or reflected on the court's public docket. Attending is optional — Class Counsel will answer the court's questions, a timely written objection is considered whether or not you appear, and a Class Member who stays in the class may ask the court for permission to speak.
If the court approves the settlement, it will enter a final judgment dismissing the lawsuit with prejudice. The Settlement Agreement then sets a schedule rather than a date: the settlement becomes effective 31 calendar days after the final approval order if no appeal is filed, Talkdesk funds the account within 30 days of that, and checks are mailed 14 days after funding. An appeal would push all of it back. No payment date has been announced.
Two provisions could still unwind the deal. Talkdesk may void the Settlement Agreement if more than 10 percent of Class Members exclude themselves or if fewer than 10 percent file a claim, and the plaintiff may void it if the class turns out to be larger than the roughly 1,114 people Talkdesk identified and Talkdesk declines to increase the payment proportionally.
Sources and Verification
This page is based on the official settlement website, the court-authorized Notice of Class Action Settlement and Claim Form, the Class Settlement Agreement, and the order granting preliminary approval in John Milito v. Talkdesk, Inc., Case No. 25-2-21719-1 SEA, King County Superior Court, Washington.- Official settlement website — EPOA Settlement TDI (claim portal, FAQs, important dates)
- Notice of Class Action Settlement and Claim Form, authorized June 17, 2026 (embedded below)
- Class Settlement Agreement, John Milito v. Talkdesk, Inc., King County Superior Court Case No. 25-2-21719-1 SEA (embedded below)
- Order Granting Plaintiff's Unopposed Motion for Preliminary Approval of Class Action Settlement, entered June 17, 2026 (embedded below)
Washington has produced a steady run of these cases. See our roundup of every open Washington job-posting settlement, the broader list of open class action settlements, or the explainers on wage and hour class actions and pro rata settlement payments.
Questions
Why does this settlement have two fund amounts, $1,828,288 and $2,785,000?
The Settlement Agreement sets a Minimum Settlement Fund of $1,828,288 and a Maximum Settlement Fund of $2,785,000, and what Talkdesk actually pays depends on how many Class Members file. Talkdesk pays the minimum if participation is at or below roughly half the class, which the agreement puts at 557 people. For every valid claim beyond that point, the Net Settlement Fund grows by another $1,718, up to the $2,785,000 ceiling. The structure means the individual share does not shrink as more people file.
The estimate is about $1,718 but the maximum is $5,000. Which one should I expect?
Approximately $1,718 is the estimated minimum, and it is the figure to plan around. Because the fund stays fixed at the minimum when participation is low, a small number of claims means each equal share is larger, and the agreement caps any one share at $5,000. Anything that would push a share above $5,000 is redirected to the Legal Foundation of Washington instead. Your own estimated amount is printed on the Claim Form that came with your notice, and every figure here is an estimate rather than a guaranteed payment.
Could filing a claim hurt my chances of being hired by Talkdesk later?
The Notice addresses this directly. It states that Talkdesk supports the settlement and will not retaliate in any way against any Settlement Class Member for participating, and that your decision to participate, not participate, or object will not affect any application for employment with Talkdesk or how Talkdesk treats you as a prospective, current, or former employee.
The judge reserved a ruling on the attorneys' fees. Does that affect my payment?
It could increase it. Class Counsel requested $821,575 in fees, which the preliminary approval order notes is 29.5 percent of the maximum fund but 44.9 percent of the minimum fund. The court preliminarily approved that amount but reserved a finding on whether it is reasonable, asked for hours records to run a lodestar cross-check, and said it may award less. Fees come out of the same fund the class is paid from, so a lower award leaves more for Class Members. The order also states that final approval of the settlement does not depend on how the court rules on fees.
Can this settlement still fall apart after I file a claim?
The Settlement Agreement gives Talkdesk the option to void the deal if more than 10 percent of Class Members exclude themselves, or if fewer than 10 percent file a claim. It also gives the plaintiff the right to void it if the class turns out to be larger than the roughly 1,114 people Talkdesk identified and Talkdesk will not increase the payment proportionally. If the settlement is voided or the court does not approve it, no payments are made and the case returns to where it stood before.
How long will I have to cash the settlement check?
The Notice states that all individual settlement payments expire and become void 120 calendar days after the date of issuance. The Settlement Agreement provides that money tied to checks still uncashed after that window is sent to the State of Washington under the state's Revised Unclaimed Property Act, chapter 63.30 RCW, in the Class Member's name. Because payments arrive by mail, the Notice also asks Class Members to tell the administrator about any address or phone number change.
Official Settlement Notice
For more class actions keep scrolling below.
Settlement Amount
$1,828,288 – $2,785,000
Minimum and Maximum Settlement Fund · set by the claim rate
Case Title
John Milito v. Talkdesk, Inc.
Case Number
25-2-21719-1 SEA
Court
King County Superior Court, Washington
Final Approval Hearing
November 20, 2026 at 8:30 AM
Seattle, WA · remote option · date may change
Class Counsel
Emery Reddy, PC
Administrator
Simpluris
Official Website
EPOA Settlement TDI
