Forward Air Stockholder Merger Vote Settlement, Do You Qualify for a Payment from the $28 Million Fund? Deadline, July 10

The Forward Air stockholder class action settlement is a fiduciary duty lawsuit where eligible shareholders of Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ: FWRD) can receive a pro-rata cash payment by filing a claim before July 10, 2026. Forward Air and its board of directors agreed to pay $28,000,000 to resolve allegations that they violated Tennessee law by stripping shareholders of their right to vote on the company’s merger with Omni Newco LLC. The case is currently pending in the Chancery Court for the State of Tennessee, Third Judicial District, Greene County, before The Honorable Douglas T. Jenkins, and has received preliminary court certification as a class action for settlement purposes.

Settlement at a Glance — Forward Air Corp., Case No. 2023-cv-400

Field	Detail
Settlement Amount	$28,000,000
Claim Deadline	July 10, 2026
Who Qualifies	Shareholders of Forward Air Corp. common stock as of August 10, 2023
Payout Per Person	Pro-rata — determined by your share count vs. total eligible shares across all claimants
Proof Required	Yes — brokerage statements or confirmation slips showing FWRD holdings as of Aug. 10, 2023
Settlement Status	Preliminarily Approved — Fairness Hearing June 25, 2026
Administrator	Verita Global — 1-888-233-7067 — [email protected]
Official Website	www.ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com
Last Updated	May 12, 2026

Where This Case Stands Right Now

• The Chancery Court for the State of Tennessee, Third Judicial District, Greene County, preliminarily certified the class for settlement purposes on March 6, 2026.
• The final approval (fairness) hearing is scheduled for June 25, 2026, at 10:00 a.m. before Judge Douglas T. Jenkins at the Greene County Courthouse, 101 South Main Street, Greeneville, Tennessee 37743.
• If the court grants final approval and no appeals delay the process, the settlement administrator will distribute payments to all valid claimants on a pro-rata basis.

What Is the Forward Air Lawsuit About? Cambria County Employees Retirement System, et al. v. Forward Air Corp., et al., No. 2023-cv-400

Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ: FWRD), a Tennessee-based asset-light freight and logistics company, agreed to merge with Omni Newco LLC in August 2023 in a deal initially valued at approximately $3.2 billion. The plaintiffs — Cambria County Employees Retirement System and former Forward Air senior vice president Michael A. Roberts — alleged in the 3rd District Chancery Court in Greeneville, Tennessee, that the Forward Air board breached its fiduciary duty under Tennessee state law by deliberately structuring the merger to avoid a required shareholder vote.

Under Tennessee corporate law, a transaction that shifts 20% or more of voting control triggers a mandatory shareholder vote. The plaintiffs argued that when accounting for the convertible preferred shares issued as part of the deal consideration, the transaction shifted approximately 35% of voting rights — well above the threshold requiring a vote. Forward Air’s board denied this interpretation, contending the deal structure fell below the vote threshold at closing. Rather than fight that dispute through trial, Forward Air and the named directors agreed to settle for $28,000,000 in cash, while denying all allegations of wrongdoing.

This type of stockholder class action settlement — where a board allegedly structures a deal to sidestep a shareholder vote — sits at the intersection of securities law and state corporate governance obligations. If you are researching similar cases, the DiDi Global $740 million securities class action settlement involved comparable allegations of corporate governance failures affecting investor rights.

Related article: $2.25M Bank of America ATM Fee Settlement, Were You Charged Twice at a 7-Eleven ATM? Here Is How to Get Paid Claim Before June 29

Who Qualifies for the Forward Air Stockholder Settlement?

To know if this settlement includes you, check whether you fall into the class definition the court approved. The settlement covers all shareholders of Forward Air Corporation as of August 10, 2023 — the date the company executed the merger agreement with Omni Newco LLC. Here is how to check if you qualify for the Forward Air class action settlement payout:

You may qualify if:

• You held shares of Forward Air Corporation (NASDAQ: FWRD) common stock as of August 10, 2023
• You held those shares in your own name, through a brokerage account, a retirement account (IRA, 401(k)), or through a custodian
• You are the actual beneficial owner or a legal representative (executor, trustee, guardian, conservator) of someone who held shares on that date
• You are a successor in interest who obtained shares by operation of law (e.g., through inheritance)
• You are an institutional investor or entity that held eligible shares — both individuals and entities qualify

You do NOT qualify if:

• You purchased Forward Air stock after August 10, 2023
• You are a named defendant in this case, including Forward Air Corporation and any board member listed in the complaint
• Your payment would calculate to less than $10.00 — the settlement administrator will not issue payments below that threshold
• You have already submitted a valid Request for Exclusion from the class (opt-out deadline was May 29, 2026)

Joint holders must each sign the claim form. Legal representatives filing on behalf of another person must provide documentation proving their authority, such as letters testamentary or a trust agreement.

How Much Can You Get from the Forward Air Settlement?

The total settlement fund is $28,000,000. Before payments reach shareholders, several amounts come out of that fund first. Court-approved attorneys’ fees for class counsel — Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP, Grant & Eisenhofer P.A., and Collins Shelton Blair & Wright PLLC — are requested at up to $8,400,000, which represents 30% of the gross settlement. Plaintiff service awards of up to $5,000 per plaintiff ($10,000 total) are also requested. Settlement administration costs are TBD — not yet confirmed from the court-approved allocation — and will be deducted from the gross fund as well.

The remaining net settlement fund distributes to eligible class members on a pro-rata basis. Your individual payment equals: (your eligible share count ÷ combined eligible shares of all valid claimants) × net settlement fund. This means your class action settlement eligibility matters, but so does how many other shareholders file valid claims — the more claims filed, the smaller each individual’s share. There is no fixed per-share recovery rate published in the notice, because the actual amount depends on total participation across all claimants.

If you want a sense of scale from similar cases, the Rivian Automotive $250 million securities settlement estimated approximately $1.18 per affected share before deductions — though each case’s allocation formula is different.

How to File Your Forward Air Stockholder Claim

You can file online or by mail. The claim deadline is July 10, 2026 — both electronic submissions and mailed claims must arrive (or be postmarked) by that date. Filing takes approximately 10–15 minutes if you have your brokerage records ready.

Step 1 — Visit the official settlement website at www.ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com to file online, or download the PDF claim form to mail it in.

Step 2 — Enter your full legal name, mailing address, and the last four digits of your Social Security number (or your full taxpayer identification number if filing as an entity).

Step 3 — Enter the total number of Forward Air common shares you held as of August 10, 2023.

Step 4 — Gather and upload (or attach to your mailed form) documentation proving your holdings — acceptable proof includes brokerage account statements, stockbroker confirmation slips, or authorized broker statements showing transactional and holding information.

Step 5 — Select your preferred payment method: physical check or electronic payment.

Step 6 — Submit your claim and save your confirmation number or mailed receipt for your records.

Mailing address: Forward Air Stockholder Settlement, c/o Verita Global, P.O. Box 301171, Los Angeles, CA 90030-1171.

Estimated time to complete: 10–15 minutes.

Forward Air Settlement Key Dates

Milestone	Date
Stipulation of Settlement Executed	March 2, 2026
Preliminary Approval Order	March 6, 2026
Objection Deadline	June 3, 2026
Opt-Out / Exclusion Deadline	May 29, 2026
Opt-Out Retraction Deadline	June 18, 2026, 5:00 p.m. ET
Final Approval (Fairness) Hearing	June 25, 2026, 10:00 a.m.
Claim Filing Deadline	July 10, 2026
Expected Payment Date	TBD — after court grants final approval and resolves any appeals

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a class action lawsuit against Forward Air Corporation? 

Yes. Cambria County Employees Retirement System et al. v. Forward Air Corporation et al., Case No. 2023-cv-400, is pending in the Chancery Court for the State of Tennessee, Third Judicial District, Greene County. The parties agreed to a $28,000,000 settlement, and a final approval hearing is set for June 25, 2026.

Do I qualify for the Forward Air settlement if I only held a small number of shares?

 If you held any Forward Air common stock as of August 10, 2023, you may qualify regardless of share count. The one exception: if your calculated payment falls below $10.00, the administrator will not issue a check. Filing is free and takes no legal expertise to complete.

How do I file a Forward Air settlement claim? 

Visit www.ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com to submit online, or mail the completed PDF claim form to Verita Global, P.O. Box 301171, Los Angeles, CA 90030-1171. Both must be submitted or postmarked by July 10, 2026.

Do I need a lawyer to file a Forward Air settlement claim?

 No. You can file directly through the settlement website without a consumer rights lawyer or any legal representation. You do not need to hire a class action lawsuit attorney — attorneys’ fees come out of the settlement fund, not from your individual payment. If you want independent legal advice about your options, a free legal consultation with a securities attorney is always your right.

When will I receive my Forward Air settlement payment? 

The settlement administrator will issue payments only after the court grants final approval at the June 25, 2026 hearing and resolves any post-approval appeals. No specific payment date has been confirmed. Based on typical timelines in stockholder settlements of this size, payments could begin several months after the hearing, assuming no objections delay the process.

What happens if I miss the July 10, 2026 claim deadline? 

The court authorized July 10, 2026 as the hard deadline for the Forward Air stockholder settlement claim. If you miss it, you will not receive a payment from this settlement fund — even if you are an eligible class member. File as early as possible to avoid any last-minute issues with documentation.

Will my Forward Air settlement payment affect my taxes?

 Possibly. Settlement payments to stockholders may be treated as taxable income or capital gain depending on your individual circumstances, the nature of the claim, and how you held the shares. Consult a tax professional before filing — this article does not constitute tax advice, and the settlement notice does not specify tax treatment.

Is this settlement legitimate? 

Yes. The settlement received preliminary court approval from the Chancery Court for the State of Tennessee on March 6, 2026, and was authorized by court order. The settlement administrator, Verita Global, is a court-appointed claims administration firm. The official website is www.ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com. Class counsel are Robbins Geller Rudman & Dowd LLP, Grant & Eisenhofer P.A., and Collins Shelton Blair & Wright PLLC — all established securities litigation firms. Never pay anyone to file your claim; filing is always free.

Sources & References

1. Official Settlement Website — ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com (Verita Global): www.ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com
2. Justia Federal Dockets — Cambria County Employees Retirement System et al. v. Forward Air Corporation et al., U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee: dockets.justia.com

Prepared by the AllAboutLawyer.com Editorial Team and reviewed for factual accuracy against the official court-authorized Summary Notice published May 8, 2026, and the settlement administrator website ForwardAirStockholderSettlement.com. Last Updated: May 12, 2026

Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Legal claims and outcomes depend on specific facts and applicable law. For advice regarding a particular situation, consult a qualified attorney.