Heirship Notification Form. Some persons included in the Settlement Class definition may now be deceased (“Deceased Class Members”). In order to assist the Settlement Administrator in the allocation and distribution of funds attributable to the interests of Deceased Class Members, the Settlement Notice mailed to Settlement Class Members will be accompanied by an Heirship/Beneficiary Information Form (“Heirship Form”), which will be substantially in the form of the document attached hereto as Exhibit 2. If a Settlement Class Member believes that he or she is entitled to receive all, or some portion, of the settlement funds allocable to a Deceased Class Member under the Plan of Allocation, then the Settlement Class Member will be requested, but not required, to mail to the Settlement Administrator a completed Heirship Form containing the information and documents requested therein. The provision of an Heirship Form will be requested as an aid to the Settlement Administrator in the distribution of the Settlement Funds, but shall not constitute a required proof of claim form, nor be a condition precedent to the allocation and distribution of settlement monies attributable to a Deceased Class Member’s interests. In the absence of an Heirship Form, the Settlement Administrator may, but will not be required to, review records in Defendant’s possession, including division orders, transfer orders, probate records, payment records, and like documents, and reasonably attempt to allocate and distribute Settlement Funds attributable to a Deceased Class Member’s interest to the person, or persons, who received royalty payments from the Producers as a successor-in-interest to the Deceased Class Member in the ordinary course of business. The Settlement Administrator may also allocate and distribute Settlement Funds attributable to a Deceased Class Member’s interests to the estate of the Deceased Class Member, with any such payment to be sent to such mailing address as may be readily ascertainable by the Settlement Administrator.
