Yahoo is obligated to pay by the end of April 2021, but we are trying to move that payment date up. If anything changes, we will be sure to notify you.
Will I owe you money if I sign up?
We're working on contingency. We'll take our fee as a share of the money we get you. There is NO scenario where you owe us money in the end, unless you sign up and then abandon the case. This FAQ is not, however, a substitute for reading and understanding our fee arrangement.
What is your fee?
Our fee will be the greater of 40% of the total recovery or the portion of the judgment or settlement or judgment negotiated or decided separately and designated as fees (a court may order Yahoo to pay our fees, so you may not even have to pay a contingency fee from your recovery). Our out-of-pocket costs will be charged against your recovery in addition to our fee. Generally, those are not big in cases like this one and most of them will be shared among a large group of clients, making them particularly small. Also, Yahoo may be ordered to pay those, or most of them. Read our fee agreement carefully before signing, to understand exactly how it works. This FAQ is not a substitute for reading our fee agreement and does not replace or override it.
How long will this take?
Cases like this can settle within a few months of filing, but could take one to three years, and sometimes significantly longer. Since Yahoo is already trying to settle the class action, they might be more inclined to settle your individual claims this year.
What would I stand to gain by participating?
If you are eligible to make a claim in the proposed Yahoo class action settlement for the data breach, you can submit your claim on that website, https://yahoodatabreachsettlement.com/. However, the cash fund to pay 200 million claims is only $50 million. You can do the math and figure out how much money each claimant will get if too many class members submit claims.
Or you can cast your lot with us and try to get a better personal settlement. When we did a similar prior lawsuit, the results for our clients were much better than for those who took a settlement in the class action.
Why do I have to move fast on this?
The deadline to exclude yourself from the Yahoo class action and bring an individual case through our office is March 4, 2020. This is because we have to submit your signed opt-out form to the court by March 6, 2020.
If I sign-up, what will I have to do?
We may have hundreds or thousands of clients. But only a small portion of them are likely to do any more than answer a few questions in writing and provide us with their documents. A client may have his or her deposition taken. In this case, a deposition probably would mean swearing to tell the truth, showing up at an office building near you, and having a Yahoo lawyer ask you questions for about an hour (our estimate). You'll also spend an hour or so preparing for those questions. Considering that we believe you'll likely net hundreds dollars from the case and make an important social/political/legal point about privacy and data protection in the process, it seems well worth your while to take the small chance you'll have to spend those few hours. Answering additional questions and providing documents also may take you a little time.
Only about 2% of cases actually go to trial these days. In a mass case like this one that probably means there's a 2% chance that a few of the many clients we hope to represent will go to trial. There will almost always be the chance to settle before trial if you wish to. Someone who goes to trial would have to take a week or two of preparation and trial time. But as you can see, the odds that'll happen, and be you, are very small.
As you know if you were represented by us in a prior similar lawsuit, you were never required to go to court.
