The Sconi

The Wisconsin Department of Justice and Department of Revenue, along with a bipartisan coalition of 30 states, have announced a settlement that concludes the outstanding damages phase of an unclaimed property dispute before the U.S. Supreme Court. In 2023, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled in favor of Arkansas and its coalition partners, determining that unclaimed official checks issued by MoneyGram Payment Systems, Inc. are governed by the Federal Disposition Act.

The settlement resolves the remaining damages phase in the consolidated cases State of Delaware v. Commonwealth of Pennsylvania et al., No. 145 Original, and State of Arkansas et al. v. State of Delaware, No. 146 Original.

“This settlement is a great result for the State of Wisconsin and Wisconsin consumers,” said Wisconsin Attorney General Josh Kaul. “Thanks to the coalition’s hard work, which culminated in this important settlement, Wisconsin will receive millions of dollars and have the opportunity to reunite some of these funds with their rightful owners.”

"We are pleased that this resolution will help direct millions of dollars in unclaimed property to rightful owners in Wisconsin," stated Wisconsin Department of Revenue Secretary David Casey. "Reuniting unclaimed property with owners is important work that we are honored to play a role in every day."

Under the terms of the settlement, Delaware will transfer more than $102 million from MoneyGram reported between 2011 and 2017 to coalition states based on each monetary instrument’s place of purchase. This amount represents roughly half of the disputed report years.

Additionally, approximately $89 million deposited by MoneyGram into a litigation escrow account from 2018 to 2022, plus interest earned, will be distributed among all 50 states based on each instrument’s place of purchase. The coalition states will receive nearly $55 million plus interest from this escrow account.

Wisconsin is set to receive over $9 million from Delaware and more than $1.6 million plus interest from the escrow account.

States will assume custody and responsibility for returning any property received under this settlement or from the escrow account to rightful owners.

In addition to Wisconsin, other states involved in initiating action against Delaware include Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky Louisiana Maryland Michigan Montana Nebraska Nevada North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania South Carolina Texas Utah Virginia Washington West Virginia Wyoming