If your location information was stored by Google from your mobile device while "Location History" was disabled, a proposed settlement may affect you

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Epiq Class Action & Claims Solutions, Inc.

Dec 04, 2023, 09:01 ET

SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 4, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Plaintiffs and Google LLC have reached a settlement in a class action lawsuit entitled In re Google Location History Litigation. In that lawsuit, plaintiffs allege that Google collected and stored their location information without their consent while Location History was disabled. Google denies all the legal claims in the lawsuit, and by agreeing to the Settlement does not admit to any wrongdoing.

You are included in this Settlement, and your rights may be affected by this Settlement, if you are a Settlement Class Member, which is defined as "All natural persons residing in the United States who used one or more mobile devices and whose location information was stored by Google while 'Location History' was disabled at any time during the Class Period (January 1, 2014 through December 4, 2023)."

No money will be paid directly to Settlement Class Members.

Under the Settlement, Google will pay $62 million into a Settlement Fund that will be used to fund payments to one or more independent non-profit 501(c)(3) organizations with a track record of addressing privacy concerns on the internet (either directly or through grants), as well as an award of reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, service awards for class representatives, notice and administration costs related to the Settlement, and taxes. Google also will revise certain practices and disclosures related to the collection of Location Information.

What are my options?

If you are a Settlement Class Member, your legal rights will be affected regardless of whether you do or do not act. Your options include:

Do nothing – If you do nothing, you will give up the right to sue, continue to sue, or be part of another lawsuit against Google related to the legal claims resolved by this Settlement.

Exclude Yourself from the Settlement - You can choose to request exclusion from the Settlement by March 4, 2024. This option allows you to sue, continue to sue, or be part of another lawsuit against Google related to the legal claims resolved by this Settlement.

Object to the Settlement and/or Attend a Hearing - If you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement, you may object to it by writing to the Court about why you don't like the Settlement, by March 4, 2024. You may object to the Settlement and ask the Court for permission to speak at the Final Approval Hearing about your objection.

Final Hearing

The Court in charge of this consolidated lawsuit has preliminarily approved the Settlement and will hold a hearing to make a final decision whether to approve it, on April 18, 2024 at San Jose Courthouse, Courtroom 4—5th Floor, 280 South 1st Street, San Jose, CA 95113 at 9 a.m. The date or time of the Final Approval Hearing may change. Please check the Settlement Website, www.GoogleLocationHistorySettlement.com, to confirm that the date has not been changed.

More Information

For more information, including a full copy of the settlement agreement, please visit the Settlement Website, www.GoogleLocationHistorySettlement.com.

You may also contact the Settlement Administrator by mail at P.O. Box 2227, Portland, OR 97208-2227.

Publicly filed documents can also be obtained by visiting the office of the Clerk of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California or, for a fee, through the Court's Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system at https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov.

PLEASE DO NOT TELEPHONE OR DIRECTLY CONTACT THE COURT OR THE COURT CLERK'S OFFICE TO INQUIRE ABOUT THE SETTLEMENT PROCESS.

Source: Epiq Class Action & Claims Solutions, Inc.

SOURCE Epiq Class Action & Claims Solutions, Inc.