NC Southern Lawyer: September 2024

Like all great lawyer answers, it depends. Data breach class actions are very hot legally. Because so many of them are happening thus resulting in myriad class actions. And why are they happening? Companies, health care entities, educational institutions, and nonprofits do not want to pay to make data secure. Generally speaking, they'd rather take the chance of being sued and losing than to fix the problem. Given how difficult it is to maintain a data breach class action in federal court due to the draconian standing requirement, this makes sense.

But it's much easier in California due to the CCPA/CPRA. This has been an absolute bonza for law firms in California or with firms that have California clients. Generally those are one in the same, but what it means, practically speaking, law firms in California scour the internet searching for potential breaches. They push blog posts, Google ads, Facebook ads, etc., and they hope they can attract a plaintiff to file first so that the lawyer. If the case isn't dismissed, it usually settles. And the class members get upwards of $750 under the CCPA. The lawyers make hundreds of thousands if not millions in fees. The mediators usually make $11,000 for a day of work. It's a nice racket.

The firms that do this kind of work remind me of law firms operating in strip malls or in your local mall. Right next to the smoothie shop and Forever 21. You know, class joints.

I view it as predatory in nature because it does little to help aggrieved consumers, and it does even less to modify corporate behavior.

Often I view it is akin to "ambulance chasing."