Boy, if I had a nickel for every one of those class action settlement letters I receive, why then by now I’d have maybe two dollars and change!

You know what I’m talking about? Every now and then someone thinks they got a bum deal in some financial transaction, and sue as a class. I don’t fully understand – If some broker did me wrong, I’d want to go after them by myself rather than including 80,000 of my closest friends who now share in my booty. I mean, it seems to me that the only people who profit from class action suits are lawyers. What am I missing here?

I know I’m party to a class action suit against Yahoo because I held a couple hundred shares back when they turned down Microsoft’s $33 offer. I have long since sold the shares (at $12) but I wonder where that lawsuit is …

Anyway, today I received a disbursement check! I’m pretty sure it’s the first one I’ve ever received. Reading the check’s fine print suggests that I purchased something overseas using one of my credit cards. I’m guessing that the credit card company gave an unfavorable exchange rate (and pocketed the difference) and this lead to the class action suit.

There’s not enough information to know which overseas trip, nor which credit card, nor even how much I spent, but appearently it was enough to qualify for $18.04 of damages!

$18.04! Wow! The big question now is … Do I invest my gains in lottery tickets or a cheap bottle of wine? Hmm..