On April 30, 2007, Gordon Tilden Thomas & Cordell LLP and Mundt MacGregor LLP, on behalf of plaintiff James Schulevitz, filed a class action lawsuit against Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide, Inc. in the Superior Court of Washington for King County (Seattle).  The lawsuit seeks certification of a nationwide class of consumers from whom Starwood collected mandatory “Bell Gratuity” charges or mandatory “Housekeeping Gratuity” charges, in addition to the quoted rate for a room at certain Starwood hotels.  The lawsuit alleges that Starwood breached its lodging contracts with its guests by imposing these additional mandatory charges above and beyond the per-night room rate agreed upon at the time of reservation.  The lawsuit also alleges that Starwood violated consumer protection laws and was unjustly enriched by engaging in this alleged practice.

Click here to review a copy of the Class Action Complaint.

The class action seeks to represent all persons who:  (a) stayed for one or more nights lodging at a Starwood hotel; (b) were charged a “Bell Gratuity” or a “Housekeeping Gratuity” in addition to the quoted per-night room rate; and (c) paid such “Bell Gratuity“ or a “Housekeeping Gratuity.”

For more information, or if you believe that you may be a member of the putative class or were affected by these practices, please contact Jeff Thomas or Mark Wilner of Gordon Tilden Thomas & Cordell, LLP – or J.D. Stahl of Mundt MacGregor LLP.