Frequently Asked Questions

The Court authorized the Notice because you have a right to know about the Settlement of this class action lawsuit and about your rights and options before the Court decides whether to grant final approval of the Settlement. District Judge Mark E. Walker of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida is overseeing this lawsuit. The lawsuit is titled Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc., Civil Action No. 4:24-cv-331-MW/MJF.

This class action lawsuit alleges that Plaintiff Keon Jackson, and other Florida residents or persons in Florida, received one or more text messages from Athena, selling goods or services, more than 15 days after the text recipient sent a message to Athena saying “stop.” This class action alleges that Athena violated the Florida Telephone Solicitation Act, Fla. Stat. § 501.059(5)(a) (“FTSA”), because that law prohibits sending telemarketing text messages to people after they have requested that those messages stop.

In a class action, a person called the “Class Representative” (in this case, Keon Jackson) sues on behalf of a group (or groups) of people who have similar legal claims. The people collectively are called a “Class,” and each person is called a “Class Member.” The individual who sues—and all of the Class Members—are called the “Plaintiffs.” The entity or company they sue (in this case, Athena Bitcoin, Inc.) is called the “Defendant.” In a class action lawsuit like this one, the Court resolves the issues and legal claims in the lawsuit for all Class Members, except for those who exclude themselves from the Class.

Once a proposed settlement is reached, the Class Members become the “FTSA Settlement Class Members” and the Settlement structures a case resolution to be approved by the Court. 

Additional information about the Court’s reasons for allowing this lawsuit to proceed as a class action is set forth in the Court’s Order granting class certification, dated June 18, 2025, which is available here.

The legal claims that are made by the Class Representative in this lawsuit are described above in Question 2. For additional information, you may read a copy of Plaintiff’s Amended Class Action Complaint, available here.

Athena denies that it did anything wrong or violated any law. You can read a copy of Athena’s Answer to Plaintiff’s Amended Class Action Complaint, available here.

The Court has decided that the messages Athena sent violate the FTSA and that Athena is liable for those violations. However, the Court has not ruled on how much money/damages Athena owes. As such, the Class Representative and Athena have reached a Settlement after considering the risk, cost, and time of continuing the lawsuit through trial and potential appeals.

Class Representative and Athena have both considered the risks and uncertainty that comes with continuing the lawsuit along with the additional time litigation would require and agreed to a Settlement that is in the best interest of the FTSA Settlement Class Members.

You are an FTSA Settlement Class Member if you were a Florida resident between July 1, 2021 and August 20, 2024, and during that time you received one or more text messages from Athena, promoting its goods or services, more than 15 days after you sent a text message saying “stop” to Athena.

The FTSA Settlement Class, as defined by the Court, includes:

All Florida residents (1) with telephone numbers having a Florida area code, (2) to whom Athena delivered, or caused to be delivered, one or more text messages promoting goods or services, (3) more than 15 days after receiving a message consisting solely of the word ‘STOP’, (4) between July 1, 2021, to August 20, 2024.

If you have (or had) a telephone number that appeared in Athena’s text message records, you may have received a text message and/or a postcard identifying you as a potential class member and notifying you of this lawsuit. 

If you did not receive a text message or a postcard, you may still be part of the FTSA Settlement Class if your current or former telephone number appears in Athena’s records. You may be able to obtain your telephone bill and/or records from your telephone carrier, but you do not need to submit that information at this time. If you have any questions about how to obtain this information, or if you are still not sure if you are included in the FTSA Settlement Class, you may call the Class Action Administrator toll-free at (833) 621-8150. You may also receive free help by calling Class Counsel, the lawyers in this lawsuit, at the telephone number in Question 28.

Excluded from the FTSA Settlement Class are Athena, including any of its parents, subsidiaries, affiliates, or controlled persons, as well as its officers, directors, agents, servants, and employees, and the immediate family members of such persons, and the judges and staff of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida.

Athena has agreed to create a “Settlement Fund” of $4,500,000.00. If you are an FTSA Settlement Class Member and you submit a timely and valid Claim Form, you may be eligible to receive a cash payment of the Settlement Fund after the following items are deducted from the Settlement Fund: attorneys’ fees and expenses awarded by the Court, Class Representative service award determined by the Court, and costs and expenses associated with class notice and administration of the Settlement.

The actual amount paid to each FTSA Settlement Class Member who submits a timely and valid Claim Form will not be determined until after the Claims Due Date has passed. The actual amount each participating member of the FTSA Settlement Class will receive may be more or less depending on the number of FTSA Settlement Class Members who submit timely, valid claims. Cash payments will not be provided to FTSA Settlement Class Members unless and until the Court approves the Settlement and it becomes final.

By remaining in the FTSA Settlement Class, all Court orders and any judgments will apply to you and legally bind you upon final approval of the Settlement. You will not be able to sue, continue to sue, or be part of any other lawsuit against the “Released Parties” about the legal issues in this lawsuit that are released by this Settlement. The specific rights you are giving up are called “Released Claims.” Unless you exclude yourself, as explained in Question 18, you will remain in the FTSA Settlement Class.

Section 7 of the Settlement Agreement describes the Releases, Released Claims, and Released Parties, in necessary legal terminology, so please read this section carefully.  

The Settlement Agreement is available here. For questions regarding the Releases or Released Claims and what the language in the Settlement Agreement means, you can also contact Class Counsel listed in Questions 23 and 28 for free, or you can talk to your own lawyer at your own expense.

Your Claim Form must be submitted online by June 30, 2026, or mailed to the Class Action Administrator at the address on the Claim Form, postmarked by June 30, 2026. Claim Forms are also available by calling (833) 621-8150 or by writing to:

Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc.

c/o Kroll Settlement Administration

PO Box 5324

New York, NY 10150- 5324

If you file a timely and valid Claim Form, cash payments will be provided by the Class Action Administrator after the Settlement is approved by the Court and becomes final. 

It may take time for the Settlement to be approved and become final. Please be patient and check here for updates. The Settlement Website is your best source for up-to-date information.

If you change your mailing address or email address after you submit a Claim Form, it is your responsibility to inform the Class Action Administrator of your updated information. You may notify the Class Action Administrator of any changes by writing to:

Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc.

c/o Kroll Settlement Administration

PO Box 5324

New York, NY 10150- 5324

You have a choice to make now about whether to stay in the FTSA Settlement Class or pursue one of your other options.

If you are an FTSA Settlement Class Member, by doing nothing you will remain in the FTSA Settlement Class but you will not receive a cash payment. Despite not receiving payment out of the Settlement Fund, you will still be bound by the Releases and Released Claims as described in Question 12. This means by doing nothing, you will not receive a payment and you will not be able to file your own lawsuit or continue to sue Athena for any of the legal claims subject to this class action. Thus, if you do nothing, you may not be able to sue Athena for the FTSA violations related to the text messages you may have received between July 1, 2021 and August 20, 2024. You will also be legally bound by all of the Orders the Court issues and any judgments the Court may make in this class action.

If you already have filed, or want to file, your own lawsuit against Athena for the same types of text messages it sent during the same time period, and want to continue pursuing your individual lawsuit, you need to ask to be excluded from the FTSA Settlement Class. If you exclude yourself from the FTSA Settlement Class—sometimes referred to as “opting-out” of the Class—you will not get any money or benefits from this class action as a result of the Settlement between the Plaintiff/Class Representative and Athena. However, you will be able to continue to pursue your own lawsuit, or separately file your own lawsuit, against Athena for the text messages that are at issue in this class action. If you exclude yourself from the FTSA Settlement Class, you will not be legally bound by the Court’s judgments in this class action. If you start your own lawsuit against Athena after excluding yourself from this FTSA Settlement Class, you will need to hire and pay your own lawyer for your lawsuit (if needed), and you will need to prove your individual legal claim(s).

To exclude yourself from the Settlement Class, you must mail a written request for exclusion stating that you want to be excluded from Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc., Civil Action No. 4:24-cv-331-MW/MJF.

Your request for exclusion must include:

1. Your name and address, 
2. The telephone number that received the text messages at issue in this lawsuit, and 
3. Your signature. 

Your exclusion request must be mailed to the Class Action Administrator at the following address postmarked by May 15, 2026:

Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc.

c/o Kroll Settlement Administration

PO Box 5324

New York, NY 10150- 5324

You cannot opt out (exclude yourself) by telephone or by email.

"Mass" or "class" requests for exclusion filed by third parties on behalf of a "mass" or "class" of FTSA Settlement Class members or multiple FTSA Settlement Class members where the request for exclusion hasn't been signed by each and every individual FTSA Settlement Class Member will not be allowed.

No. If you exclude yourself, you will not be able to receive a cash payment, but you will not be bound by the Settlement or any judgment in this lawsuit. You can only get a cash payment if you remain in the FTSA Settlement Class and submit a timely and valid Claim Form.

No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up any right to sue any of the Released Parties for the legal claims this Settlement resolves, and you remain bound by the Releases relating to the lawsuit. If you have a separate pending lawsuit against Athena, speak to your lawyer in that case immediately.

If you are an FTSA Settlement Class member, you can tell the Court you do not agree with all or any part of the Settlement.

To object, you must file timely written notice with the Court as provided below no later than May 15, 2026, with copies sent to Class Counsel and Defendant's Counsel postmarked by May 15, 2026, stating you object to the Settlement in Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc., Case No. 4:24-cv-331-MW/MJF.

To file an objection, you cannot exclude yourself from the FTSA Settlement Class. Your objection must include all of the following information:

1) Your full name, address, telephone number(s), and email address (if any);

2) The specific grounds for the objection, accompanied by any legal support for the objection known to you as the objector or your own lawyer;

3) The number of times you have objected to a class action settlement within the five (5) years preceding the date that you file the objection, the caption of each case in which you have made such objection, and a copy of any orders related to or ruling upon your prior objections that were issued by the trial and appellate courts in each listed case;

4) The identity of any lawyers representing you in connection with the objection (if any);

5) The number of times in which your lawyer or your lawyer's law firm have objected to a class action settlement within the five (5) years preceding the date of the filed objection, the caption of each case in which your lawyer or the firm has made such objection and a copy of any orders related to or ruling upon your lawyer's or the lawyer's law firm's prior objections that were issued by the trial and appellate courts in each listed case in which your counsel and/or law firm have objected to a class action settlement within the preceding five (5) years;

6) A list of all persons who will be called to testify at the Final Approval Hearing in support of the objection (if any); and

7) Your signature as the objector (an attorney's signature is not sufficient).

To be timely, written notice of an objection including all of the information above must be filed with the Court by May 15, 2026.

If you fail to comply with the requirements for objecting as detailed above, you will waive and forfeit any rights you may have to appear separately and/or to object to the Settlement, and you will be bound by all the terms of the Settlement and by all proceedings, orders, and judgments entered in the lawsuit. 

Objecting is simply telling the Court you do not like something about the Settlement, the Class Representative service award, or the requested attorneys' fees and costs. You can object only if you remain in the FTSA Settlement Class (meaning you do not opt out of the Settlement). Opting out of the Settlement, also known as asking to be excluded from the Settlement, is telling the Court you do not want to be part of the FTSA Settlement Class or the Settlement. If you opt out, you cannot also object to the Settlement.

The Court has appointed a team of lawyers from the law firm The HQ Firm, P.C. to represent the FTSA Settlement Class. They are called “Class Counsel.” They are experienced in handling similar class action lawsuits and legal claims.

You do not need to hire your own lawyer because Class Counsel is working on your behalf in this lawsuit and was appointed by the Court to do so. If you want someone else to represent you in this lawsuit, you may hire your own lawyer at your own expense.

You will not personally pay Class Counsel. Class Counsel will file a motion asking the Court to award attorneys' fees in an amount equal to 33% of the Settlement Fund. Class Counsel will also ask the Court to award the costs it has incurred litigating this case, a service award for the Class Representative, and the costs of administering the Settlement. If awarded by the Court, the attorneys' fees and costs will be paid from the Settlement Fund. The Court may also award less than the amounts Class Counsel asks for. 

Class Counsel's application for the attorneys' fees, Class Representative incentive award, and costs will be made available here.

The Court will hold a Final Approval Hearing on August 10, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. before the Honorable Mark E. Walker at the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Joseph Woodrow Hatchett United States Courthouse and Federal Building, 111 N. Adams Street, Tallahassee, FL 32301-7730. At this hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate, and will decide whether to approve the Settlement and Class Counsel’s application for attorneys’ fees, the Class Representative service award, and costs.

Note: The date and time of the Final Approval Hearing are subject to change without further notice to the FTSA Settlement Class. The Court may also decide to hold the hearing via video conference or by telephone. You should check here for updates and to confirm the date, time, and format of the Final Approval Hearing have not changed.

You do not need to attend the Final Approval Hearing. Class Counsel will represent you there and will answer any questions the Court may have. You are welcome to attend at your own expense.

Complete details about the Settlement, the class action, and certain Court orders can be found on this Settlement Website. The website will be updated with the most current information about the lawsuit as it becomes available.

You may also get additional information by calling toll-free at (833) 621-8150, or by writing to:

Jackson v. Athena Bitcoin, Inc.

c/o Kroll Settlement Administration

PO Box 5324

New York, NY 10150- 5324

You may also call Class Counsel at (385) 440-4100 if you have further questions. 

PLEASE DO NOT TELEPHONE THE COURT OR THE COURT’S 
CLERK OFFICE REGARDING THIS LAWSUIT. THEY CANNOT ANSWER QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS LAWSUIT.