Douglas Eberly, PMMB chief counsel, was joined by board Chair Robert Barley and Director Carol Hardbarger in a conference call with about 175 producers and others on Dec. 10. A recording of the conference call is available here.
The PMMB, in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Attorney General and ASK LLP, developed the forms, which should provide the legal defense clearing farmers from having to pay back any money received from Dean for milk at the end of 2019.
ASK LLP, a law firm based in St. Paul, Minnesota, was authorized by the bankruptcy court to send avoidance claim settlement offers to all companies that received Dean payments during the 90-day period prior to the company filing for bankruptcy on Nov. 12, 2019. In this case, some dairy farmers and milk haulers who received Dean payments for milk deliveries, beginning approximately Aug. 14 through Nov. 11, 2019, received avoidance claim settlement offers from ASK LLP, even though the payments they received were normal course of business.
Those who received the avoidance claim settlement offers should not ignore them, but rather submit the declaration form so they are properly identified as a dairy producer or milk hauler with a legal defense by the bankruptcy court.
Although dairy farmers are not likely to be included in the first wave of documents submitted by ASK LLP to the bankruptcy court in January or February, farmers and haulers should make an effort to submit a declaration form prior to the deadline identified in their individual settlement offer, Eberly said.
ASK LLP must receive the declaration forms to provide the bankruptcy court and Dean creditors committee to document that producers, haulers and others received payments for milk or services in the normal course of business.
The declaration forms are constructed to be utilized by any dairy farm or milk hauler in any state – not just Pennsylvania – and should also eliminate the need to provide the 15 months of milk payment records in the ASK LLP request.
Although the simple forms are designed to be filled out without the help of a lawyer, affected producers may want to seek legal advice from their attorney if they have any questions, Eberly said.
The farmer and hauler declaration forms and supporting information can be downloaded from the PMMB website.
Farmers and haulers should complete the appropriate declaration, entering the ASK file number contained on their letter, the date they received correspondence from ASK and brief details regarding their relationship with Dean. After completing and signing the declaration, it should be returned via email, fax or U.S. mail to the paralegal assigned to the matter (noted in the letter from ASK LLP).
If the declaration, along with payment information ASK has, appears sufficient, ASK will contact its client to request permission to close the file. When the file is closed, ASK will inform the farmer or hauler, according to PMMB.
Read also:
‘Declarations’ pave way for resolution to Dean settlement offer claims
Producer defenses to Dean ‘preference’ payment demand letters mount
Dairy farmers asked to return Dean ‘preference’ payments 
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Dave Natzke
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