Eighth Circuit Approves $10 Million Settlement in Target Data Breach Litigation
On June 14, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit affirmed a class action settlement that concluded a multi-district litigation (MDL) against retailer Target Corp. over its massive 2013 data breach affecting more than 40 million consumers.
The settlement, initially reached in 2015, required Target to establish a $10 million fund for impacted consumers and to significantly improve its data security practices by designating a high-level executive with responsibility to coordinate Target’s information security program, providing security training to its employees, and maintaining processes to monitor and respond to future data security threats.
The Eighth Circuit previously vacated and remanded the district court’s order certifying the class and approving the settlement agreement after concluding that the district court’s order lacked sufficient legal analysis. On remand, the district court again certified the class after conducting a rigorous analysis of the proposed settlement. In approving the settlement, the Eighth Circuit held that the district court’s renewed analysis was sufficient to conclude that the settlement was fair, reasonable, and adequate.
Norman Siegel was named to the Plaintiffs’ Steering Committee on behalf of the consumer class in the MDL. Stueve Siegel attorneys represented dozens of named plaintiffs whose information was compromised and worked closely with the leadership team to vet potential class representatives, oppose Target’s motion to dismiss the case, and mediate the case to a successful resolution. Settlement benefits will be distributed to class members in early 2019.
