Six out of seven bank groups settle with TJX  

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 12/19/2007 1:50:00 PM

Framingham, Mass. – As off-price retailing titan The TJX Cos. continues to work its way out of its computer security breach fiasco, the $118 million reserve charge it took (in fiscal second quarter results) against settlement charges seems to be covering the liability expenses to date.

The $17.4 billion retailer said today that all but one of various banks and banking groups that had brought suit for damages resulting from the breach and related TJX consumer identity theft have settled for an undisclosed, negotiated sum, and “will dismiss all of their claims against TJX.”

TJX denied all wrongdoing. The class action by the banks is still subject to a pending motion for reconsideration, TJX noted, “and a possible appeal by the non-settling plaintiff bank.”

The 2,572-store company last month reached a settlement with Visa that stipulated $40.9 million pre-tax “in alternative recovery payments” to issuing institutions, on condition that issuers of at least 80% of the eligible Visa accounts accepted the offer by today, Dec. 19. Now that condition seems to be achievable.