J. Austin Moore: SSH

Overview

Austin Moore litigates high-stakes cases. He practices in state and federal courts across the country and regularly takes on major corporations in nationwide class actions. Over the last decade, Austin has recovered hundreds of millions of dollars for consumers and victims of personal injuries.

The National Law Journal recently selected Austin as one of the “Rising Stars of the Plaintiff Bar” in its 2023 Elite Trial Lawyers Awards. Austin has also been recognized by Law360 as one of the “Top Attorneys Under 40” in the country, named a “Rising Star” in class action law by Super Lawyers, and honored as an "Up and Coming Lawyer" by Missouri Lawyers Weekly.

Austin focuses his practice on three primary practice areas:

Data Breach and Privacy Litigation. Austin is a national leader in data breach and privacy cases. He has played key roles representing consumers in many of the nation’s largest data breach class actions, including lawsuits against T-Mobile, Target, the Home Depot, Anthem Insurance, Equifax, and Marriott. Austin’s recent successes include:

Co-lead counsel in $2.3 million settlement on behalf of employees of Citrix
Co-lead counsel in $3.25 million settlement on behalf of optometrists
Member of leadership teams that achieved the historic $1.5 billion Equifax settlement and $500 million T-Mobile data breach settlement

Austin has also served as appellate counsel in multiple precedent-setting data breach cases addressing Article III injury. He is the past president of the Data Breach and Privacy section of the American Association for Justice and currently serves as a member of the Sedona Conference working groups on Data Security and Privacy Liability and HIPAA.

Consumer Class Actions. Austin represents consumers who have been harmed by corporate misconduct, including false advertising, deceptive practices, and credit reporting errors. Austin recently obtained one of the largest recoveries in history relating to inaccurate credit reports, securing $29 million in settlements in two pioneering cases against Experian arising out of the agency’s reporting of delinquent loan accounts. Austin is currently representing travel nurses and other healthcare workers who were subject to “take-it-or-leave-it” pay-rate reductions in the middle of their contracts.

Sexual Abuse Liability. Austin advocates for victims of sexual abuse in civil cases against their perpetrators and other negligent parties. He respects the sensitivity of these cases by working with local counseling centers and adopting a trauma-informed approach to his legal representation. Austin’s recent results include:

$8.2 million verdict for sexual assault victim who sued assailant for civil assault and battery
$1.5 million settlement in nursing home resident sexual assault case
Confidential settlement reached against ridesharing giant Uber after female rider was sexually assaulted by driver with criminal background
Confidential settlement for underage female employee who was sexually assaulted by manager on premises

Before joining Stueve Siegel Hanson in 2013, Austin was in private practice in St. Louis, where he primarily defended class action cases. He credits this experience with helping him understand how defense lawyers will approach a case – and helping him craft litigation strategies that secure a courtroom advantage.

Experience

Current Cases

T-Mobile Data Breach Litigation (Western District of Missouri) – Austin is a member of the leadership team representing consumers multi-district litigation against T-Mobile after a massive data breach affecting 77 million current, former, and potential customers. In June 2023, the court granted final approval to a $500 million settlement on behalf of victims.

Travel Nurse Unpaid Wages Litigation - Austin is representing travel nurses against numerous staffing agencies for making “take-it-or-leave-it” pay-rate reductions in the middle of their contracts and failing to pay sufficient overtime wages. Austin's representation has been featured in Newsweek, NBC News, and Kaiser Health News among others.

Kimberly-Clark Flushable Wipes Litigation (Northern District of Texas) – Austin filed the nation's first class action lawsuit against Kimberly-Clark, owner of toilet paper brand Cottonelle, after a harmful bacteria was detected in Cottonelle’s flushable wipes products. Austin is seeking recovery for economic losses and representing more than 1,000 individuals who suffered personal injuries after using the wipes.

Quest Diagnostics Data Breach Litigation (District of New Jersey) - Austin is working with lead counsel representing more than 11.5 million victims in multi-district litigation against Quest Diagnostics after its vendor, debt collector American Medical Collection Agency, suffered a massive data breach.

Broward Health Data Breach Litigation (Southern District of Florida) – Austin is representing more than 1.3 million patients of the Broward Health system after a data breach exposed their personal, financial, and medical information in violation of HIPAA and related state laws.

UC San Diego Health Data Breach Litigation (Superior Court of San Diego) – Austin is part of the leadership team appointed to represent more than 500,000 patients of the UC San Diego Health system after their financial and medical records, including treatment information, laboratory results, and medical diagnoses, were stolen by hackers in violation of HIPAA and related state laws.

Marriott Data Breach Litigation (District of Maryland) – Austin is working with lead counsel representing consumers multi-district litigation against Marriott and Starwood Hotels following a four-year long data breach compromising 383 million guest records. Austin is part of the briefing teams that achieved favorable rulings on the motions to dismiss and class certification.

Recent Litigation Highlights (Privacy and Consumer Class Actions)

Mediant Data Breach Litigation (Southern District of New York) - Austin was appointed as co-lead counsel in this case resulting from a data breach that compromised the Social Security numbers, Tax IDs, bank accounts, and securities holdings information of more than 220,000 investors. In January 2023, a federal judge granted final approval to a settlement that provides extensive relief for victims.

Ring Privacy Litigation (Central District of California) - Austin successfully represented multiple families whose indoor Ring camera devices were hacked allowing them to be spied on and harassed inside their own homes. The cases asserted that Ring knowingly failed to implement basic security protocols to prevent the unauthorized access, including two-factor identification and alerts of suspicious log-ins.

OPM Data Breach Litigation (District of Columbia) – Austin represented government employees and contractors against the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) for a data breach affecting 21.5 million individuals. Following a successful appeal in the D.C. Circuit, the court granted final approval to a $63 million settlement on behalf of victims with claims under the Privacy Act in October 2022.

Equifax Data Breach Litigation (Northern District of Georgia) – Austin worked alongside co-lead counsel Norman Siegel representing consumers in multi-district litigation against Equifax following its massive data breach impacting 147 million Americans. In December 2019, the Court granted final approval to a historic settlement that includes up to $505.5 million in cash benefits and requires Equifax to spend at least $1 billion upgrading its security over the next five years.

Experian FCRA Litigation (Central District of California) – Austin was appointed as class counsel in two cases that resulted in settlements totaling $29 million against credit reporting agency Experian arising out of the agency’s reporting of delinquent loan accounts. Austin led all aspects of the cases including devising the novel case theory, conducting fact and expert discovery, and briefing and arguing substantive motions, including a successful motion for class certification and three fully-briefed appeals.

Citrix Data Breach Litigation (Southern District of Florida) – Austin was appointed as co-lead counsel in consolidated litigation against technology company Citrix, Inc. after the company suffered a 5-month data breach affecting nearly 24,000 current and former employees. In June 2021, the court approved a $2.3 million settlement that offers an array of benefits to class members.

NBEO Data Breach Lawsuit (District of Maryland) – Austin was appointed as class counsel on behalf of optometrists who had their personal information compromised by the national optometry board. Following nearly three years of litigation that included a successful appeal, the court approved an “outstanding” $3.25 million settlement.

Anthem Data Breach Litigation (Northern District of California) – In August 2018, a federal district court granted final approval of a $115 million settlement to consumers whose personal information was hacked from Anthem Blue Cross/Blue Shield insurance companies. Austin was responsible for overseeing the plaintiff vetting and selection process and subsequent plaintiff discovery efforts.

Home Depot Data Breach Litigation (Northern District of Georgia) – Austin was a key member of the leadership group appointed to represent consumers in multi-district litigation against the Home Depot following a massive data breach affecting more than 60 million consumers. In August 2016, the court approved a final settlement valued at over $29 million. Austin chaired the team of attorneys tasked with investigating the case and handling all substantive briefing in the litigation.

Target Data Breach Litigation (District of Minnesota) – Austin was a member of the leadership team appointed to represent a class of consumers in multi-district litigation against Target over its massive 2013 data breach affecting more than 40 million consumers. In June 2018, the Eighth Circuit affirmed approval of a settlement valued at $23 million that provided for $10 million in cash payments to class members. Austin led nationwide plaintiff vetting and discovery efforts in the litigation.

Recent Litigation Highlights (Sexual Abuse Cases)

$8.2 Million Verdict for Sexual Assault Victim – Austin served as trial counsel on behalf of a sexual assault victim who sued her assailant for civil assault and battery. On June 14, 2019, a Jackson County, Missouri judge awarded the victim more than $8.2 million in damages that included $7.2 million in economic and non-economic damages for her “serious and permanent physical, emotional and personal injuries” and an additional $1 million in punitive damages.

$1.5 Million Settlement for Nursing Home Victim - Austin obtained a $1.5 million settlement on behalf of a client who was sexually assaulted at a nursing home by another resident. The confidential settlement was reached on the eve of trial following extensive fact and expert discovery.

Confidential Sexual Assault Settlement – Austin represented a female employee against her employer after suffering continuous sexual harassment and abuse from customers while on the job. Following an extensive investigation, Austin was able to negotiate a confidential seven-figure settlement for his client.

Confidential Sexual Assault Settlement – Austin represented an underage female employee after she was sexually assaulted by her male manager at work and in the course of her employment. After filing a complaint with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the parties were able to reach a confidential settlement that received final court approval in May 2019.

Uber Sexual Assault Lawsuit (Jackson County, Missouri) – Austin filed a lawsuit against Uber on behalf of a young woman who was raped by her Uber driver. An investigation revealed that prior to the assault, the driver had been convicted of attempted murder and sentenced to 16 years in prison and other women had complained to Uber about the driver’s assaultive and harassing conduct. After more than 18 months of hard-fought litigation, the case was resolved to the mutual satisfaction of the parties in February 2019.

Appellate Litigation

Clemens v. ExecuPharm Inc., 48 F.4th 146 (3d Cir. 2022) - Austin briefed and argued this appeal which resulted in the unanimous reversal of the dismissal of data breach class action for lack of Article III standing to sue and clarified the contours of data breach "injury" within the circuit.

Reyes v. Experian, 856 Fed.Appx. 108 (9th Cir. 2021) – Obtained reversal of trial court’s reduction of attorneys’ fee award where judge who ruled on fees did not preside over litigation and “settlement was the largest Experian has ever agreed to in a case under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.”

Reyes v. Experian,773 F. App'x 882 (9th Cir. 2019) – Obtained reversal of trial court’s decision to grant summary judgment in favor of Experian in a class action under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, finding novel theory of liability should be weighed by jury.

Hutton v. National Board of Examiners in Optometry, 892 F.3d 613 (4th Cir. 2018) – Obtained reversal of trial court’s dismissal of data breach class action for lack of Article IIII standing against national optometry board that denied responsibility for breach.

Moss v. First Premier Bank, 835 F. 3d 260 (2d. Cir. 2016) – Austin briefed and argued an appeal addressing whether Federal Arbitration Act permits appointment of a substitute arbitrator where the contractually-designated arbitrator declines to hear the case. In a published opinion, the Second Circuit affirmed district court’s decision to deny arbitration.

Parm v. National Bank of California, 835 F. 3d 1331 (11th Cir. 2016) – Obtained affirmance of district court's order declining to enforce tribal arbitration agreement because it required arbitration before “an illusory and unavailable arbitral forum.”

Flagg v. First Premier Bank, No. 15-14052 (11th Cir. 2016) – Obtained affirmance of district court's order denying arbitration where the arbitrator designated in agreement stopped accepting consumer arbitration claims.

Affordable Communities of Missouri v. Fannie Mae, 714 F.3d 1069 (8th Cir. 2013) – Obtained reversal of trial court’s dismissal of breach of contract claim on behalf of a real estate developer alleging that Fannie Mae subjected it to wrongful loan pre-payment penalties.