The following news item appeared on p.2 of the 5/3/99 issue of Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly. (No URL available):

"Y2K Class Action Suit is Settled.

"A class action suit brought by a Stoughton company, Qual-Craft Industries Inc., over a Y2K computer glitch has been settled with RealWorld Corp., the Manchester, N.H. software manufacturer. RealWorld has agreed to provide free upgrades and other discounts valued at an estimated $915 to each of 40,000 business customers whose software may malfunction Jan. 1, 2000. Customers with the software have until September to claim the benefits.

"Qual-Craft Industries Inc., a construction tool maker, filed the suit last June in Norfolk Superior Court. The suit alleged that RealWorld failed to upgrade certain accounting software to avoid problems with the date change to Jan. 1, 2000. Many of RealWorlds programs used just the last two digits of each year to keep track of dates.

"Qual-Craft bought programs from RealWorld in 1995 for accounting and order-processing. It later learned of the possible Y2K problem.

"The settlement, which was approved by a judge last week, could cost RealWorld as much as $55 million. That is several times the total revenue of the company, its chief executive, Kurt Mueffelmann, told a local publication."

I recall using RealWorld accounting software in a former life

-- Brooks (brooksbie@hotmail.com), June 14, 1999

Answers

40,000 customers. Wonder who wins if RealWorld simply declares bankruptcy.

-- Brooks (brooksbie@hotmail.com), June 14, 1999.

Brooks, The answer is obvious. The lawyers win, they get their cut off the top....

-- kozak (kozak@formerusaf.guv), June 14, 1999.