Published
July 17, 2024
Updated
August 1, 2026
The $14.95 million TaxAct privacy settlement covered certain online Form 1040 users and joint-filing spouses. Claims closed in September 2024, and an appeal still blocks the monetary distribution.
Current Status
Claims are closed. The deadline was September 11, 2024. The court granted final approval on December 30, 2024, but an appeal was filed on January 2, 2025. The official administrator says cash distribution is delayed until all appeals are resolved and the settlement remains approved; it does not announce a cash-payment date.StatusAppeal Pending
Claim DeadlineSeptember 11, 2024 — Passed
Settlement Fund$14.95 Million
Historical ProofNo Receipts or Notice ID Required
What Changed After the Claim Period?
The court entered final approval on December 30, 2024. Two class members filed a notice of appeal three days later, so the settlement's cash portion could not be distributed on the original schedule. The administrator separately made the non-cash TaxAct Xpert Assist benefit available to authorized claimants beginning January 7, 2025. That benefit related to tax-year 2024 returns and is now historical; the continuing public issue is the unresolved appeal and delayed monetary distribution.What Was the Lawsuit About?
TaxAct users alleged that the online tax-preparation service shared personal and financial information with third parties, including Facebook and Google, without adequate permission. The claims focused on tracking tools associated with TaxAct's online do-it-yourself Form 1040 products. TaxAct denied violating any law and agreed to the settlement to avoid the cost and risk of continued litigation. The settlement resolved disputed allegations and was not a finding that TaxAct was liable.Who Was Included?
The nationwide user class covered natural persons who used a TaxAct online do-it-yourself consumer Form 1040 product and filed a return through that product between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2022, using a U.S. postal address. A California subclass covered otherwise eligible users whose return listed a California address. A separate married-filing-jointly class covered spouses whose partner used the qualifying TaxAct product for a joint return during the same period, with a California subclass for joint returns listing a California address. Certain people who had filed arbitration demands by January 9, 2024, were excluded unless they timely opted into the settlement.How Were Cash Payments Calculated?
The net settlement fund was to be divided using allocation points rather than a flat payment. California user-subclass members received six points, nationwide user-class members three points, California joint-filing spouses two points, and nationwide joint-filing spouses one point. The value of each point depends on the net fund after approved costs and on the total points represented by authorized claims. That means the $14.95 million fund is not divided equally among every person who used TaxAct, and the final cash amount cannot be stated until the appeal and administration are complete.What Did the Historical Claim Require?
The claim form required identifying and contact information plus an attestation under penalty of perjury that the claimant belonged to a settlement class. The paper form did not require receipts, tax-return uploads, or an administrator-issued notice ID. A timely, complete form still had to be approved. The September 2024 deadline has passed, and OpenClassActions cannot submit or reopen a claim.What Was the Xpert Assist Benefit?
Authorized claimants were also offered free use of TaxAct Xpert Assist for a tax-year 2024 return. The official site says that benefit became available on January 7, 2025, even though the cash portion remained delayed by the appeal. It was a separate, time-specific settlement benefit, not an additional cash award and not a new filing opportunity.What Should Authorized Claimants Do Now?
Keep the claim confirmation and any payment-selection record. The administrator's homepage is the source for an appeal-resolution notice or a monetary-distribution announcement. Do not treat final approval alone as proof that cash was sent: the official alert expressly says the monetary elements remain delayed while the appeal is pending. OpenClassActions is not the administrator and should not receive tax documents, account records, or payment information.Why Payment Timing Remains Uncertain
An appeal can challenge approval, fees, or other rulings, and the settlement generally cannot become fully effective until appellate proceedings end. The administrator has not published a timetable for that process. If the appeal is dismissed or decided and the settlement remains approved, the site should be updated before a distribution date is treated as confirmed.Official Information
Review the latest information on the official TaxAct settlement website website.
Case
Smith-Washington v. TaxAct, Inc.
Case Number
3:23-cv-00830-VC
Court
U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
Settlement Fund
$14.95 million
Claim Deadline
September 11, 2024
Final Approval
December 30, 2024
Appeal Filed
January 2, 2025
Official Website
official TaxAct settlement website
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