About Cy Pres

Under the cy pres doctrine, a court may distribute unclaimed class action settlement money to charitable organizations whose work coincides with the goal of the litigation. Sometimes it is difficult to identify all class members affected by a settlement or it may be impractical to disburse all funds. This can happen, for instance, when it is financially unfeasible to disburse funds because the amounts are too small or when there are remaining funds because class members do not cash their checks.

The term cy pres (pronounced “sigh pray”) derives from the French phase cy pres comme possible and it translates to “as close as possible.” A cy pres award will go to the next best grantee when leftover funds cannot go to the intended recipient.

Nominate Worksafe for Cy Pres Award

Worksafe has been repeatedly approved for cy pres awards because we are dedicated to promoting and protecting the basic right of all people to a safe and healthy workplace. We provide:

• Legal Assistance to individuals, attorneys who represent indigent clients, and legal aid organizations
• Training for capacity development of workers’ advocates
• Policy Advocacy for protective worker health and safety laws and effective remedies for people who are injured on the job or suffer work-related illness

If you are interested in designating Worksafe as a cy pres award recipient, please contact Executive Director Stephen Knight at (510) 922-1444 or sknight@worksafe.org.