Frequently Asked Questions

This notice is to tell you about the settlement of a class action lawsuit, IN RE: SEQUOIA BENEFITS AND INSURANCE DATA BREACH LITIGATION brought on behalf of people whose personal information was stored on a cloud storage system that may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party between September 22 and October 6, 2022. You received this notice because you may be a member of the group of people affected, called the “class.” This notice gives you a summary of the terms of the proposed settlement agreement, explains what rights class members have, and helps class members make informed decisions about what action to take. 

A Court approved this notice. Please do not contact the Court. 

The Court overseeing this case is: 

U.S. District Court, Northern District of California
San Francisco Courthouse, Courtroom 15 – 18th Floor
450 Golden Gate Avenue San Francisco, CA 94102
 

Read this notice to understand the settlement and to determine if you are a class member. Then, decide if you want to:

Read on to understand the specifics of the settlement and what each choice would mean for you. 

Your deadline to object or opt out: February 9, 2026
Settlement approval hearing: April 7, 2026
Your deadline to submit a claim form: March 11, 2026

The Court will hold a fairness hearing to decide whether to approve the settlement. The hearing will be held at: 

Where: Phillip Burton Federal Building & United States Courthouse, Courtroom 15, 18th Floor, 450 Golden Gate Ave., San Francisco, CA 94102. 

When: 1:30 p.m. PT on April 7, 2026.

Zoom Link: https://cand-uscourts.zoomgov.com/j/1615482105?pwd=cTZiSVdXelllSXpjQ1p0Nm5HaXRYUT09
    Webinar ID: 161 548 2105
    Password: 315725
 

The Court has directed the parties to publicly post this notice about the proposed settlement. Because the settlement of a class action decides the rights of all members of the proposed class, the Court must give final approval to the settlement before it can take effect. Payments will only be made if the Court approves the settlement.
 

You don’t have to attend, but you may at your own expense. You may also ask the Court for permission to speak and express your opinion about the settlement. If the Court does not approve the settlement or the parties decide to terminate the settlement, it will be void and the lawsuit will continue. The date of the hearing may change without further notice to members of the class. To learn more and confirm the hearing date, go here. You are advised to check the settlement website or the Court’s PACER site to confirm that the date has not been changed.
 

The settlement pays money to individuals whose personal information held by Sequoia may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party. 

Sequoia has agreed to pay $8.7 million into a settlement fund. This money will be divided among the class members and will also be used to pay for costs and fees approved by the Court, including the cost of administering this settlement (expected to be approximately $479,000). Members of the settlement class will “release” their claims as part of the settlement, which means they cannot sue Sequoia for the same issues in this lawsuit. The full terms of the release can be found here.
 

If there is money left over after the claims process is completed, it will be donated to a recipient approved by the Court. 
 

If you received notice from Sequoia that your personal information may have been accessed by an unauthorized third party between September 22 and October 6, 2022, or you have reason to believe you may have been impacted by the incident, you may be a member of the class and entitled to money.

Class members have two different options for submitting claims. The amount a class member will recover depends on which option they choose. 
 

The first option is for a class member to submit a claim to be reimbursed for money or time spent protecting their data as a result of the data breach. The amount will depend on how much the class member has lost or spent and whether they have receipts or other records as well as how many total claims are filed. Class members may recover up to $7,500 per individual. 
 

If you choose the first option and your total losses are determined to be less than the amount distributed via the second option, you will automatically receive the second option.
 

The second option is for a claimant to receive an estimated cash payment of $75. 
 

Class members claiming either option who lived in California between September 22 and October 6, 2022, are eligible for an additional payment to reflect claims under California privacy laws, which is estimated at $150.
 

You have four options. You can stay in the settlement and submit a claim, you can opt out of the settlement, you can object to the settlement, or you can do nothing. This chart shows the effects of each option:

*You can object to the settlement AND submit a claim form to receive payment. If you object but do not submit a claim form, you will receive nothing if the Court overrules your objection and approves the settlement. 

If you wish to receive money, you must submit a completed claim form to the Settlement Administrator online or download a claim form here and mail to the Settlement Administrator (address below).

In a class action, the court appoints class representatives and lawyers to work on the case and represent the interests of all the class members. For this settlement, the Court has appointed the following individuals and lawyers. 
 

Your lawyers:
 

David M. Berger, GIBBS MURA LLP
Rachele R. Byrd, WOLF HALDENSTEIN ADLER FREEMAN & HERZ LLP
M. Anderson Berry, EMERY REDDY, PC.  
Kaleigh N. Boyd, TOUSLEY BRAIN STEPHENS PLLC
 

These are the lawyers who negotiated this settlement on your behalf. 

If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, you may hire one at your own expense.

Lawyers' fees and costs will be paid from the Settlement Fund. You will not have to pay the lawyers directly.

To date, your lawyers have not been paid any money for their work or the expenses that they have paid for the case. To pay for some of their time and risk in bringing this case without any guarantee of payment unless they were successful, your lawyers will request, as part of the final approval of this Settlement, that the Court approve a payment of up to $2,175,000 total in attorneys’ fees plus the reimbursement of out-of-pocket expenses. 

Lawyers' fees and expenses will only be awarded if approved by the Court as a fair and reasonable amount.  You have the right to object to the lawyers' fees even if you think the settlement terms are otherwise fair.

Your lawyers will also ask the Court to approve a payment of $21,000 to the Class Representatives ($3,500 per representative) for the time and effort they contributed to the case.  If approved by the Court, this will be paid from the Settlement Fund.
 

You can opt out. If you do, you will not receive payment and cannot object to the settlement. However, you will not be bound or affected by anything that happens in this lawsuit and may be able to file your own case. You cannot exclude yourself from the program changes called for by the proposed settlement.

To opt out of the settlement, you must either (1) submit an opt-out form on the settlement website or (2) download and complete the opt-out form posted on the settlement website and mail it to the Settlement Administrator at:

The form must be either mailed and postmarked or submitted electronically on the website by February 9, 2026. Be sure to include your name, address, telephone number, and signature. 

If you disagree with any part of the settlement (including the lawyers' fees) but don’t want to opt out, you may object. You must give reasons why you think the Court should not approve it and say whether your objection applies to just you, a part of the class, or the entire class. The Court will consider your views. The Court can only approve or deny the settlement — it cannot change the terms of the settlement. You may, but don’t need to, hire your own lawyer to help you. The requirement to make your objection in writing may be excused upon a showing of good cause.

To object, you must send a letter to the Court (or file through the Court’s electronic filing system) that:

1. is postmarked by February 9, 2026;
2. includes the case name and number (In re Sequoia Benefits and Insurance Data Breach Litigation and Case No. 3:22-CV-08217-RFL)
3. includes your full name, address and telephone number, and email address (if you have one);
4. states the reasons for your objection; 
5. says whether either you or your lawyer intend to appear at the final approval hearing and your lawyer's name; 
6. has your signature or the signature of a duly authorized attorney or representative representing you for purposes of the objection.

Mail the letter to:

You must substantially comply with the above requirements.
 

If you do nothing, you will not get any money, but you will still be bound by the settlement and its “release” provisions. That means you won’t be able to start, continue, or be part of any other lawsuit against Sequoia about the issues in this case. A full description of the claims and persons who will be released if this settlement is approved can be found here.

This notice is a summary of the proposed settlement. The complete settlement with all its terms can be found here. To get a copy of the settlement agreement or get answers to your questions:

• contact your lawyer (information below)
• visit the case website at www.sequoiadatasettlement.com 
• access the Court’s Public Access to Court Electronic Records (PACER) system at https://ecf.cand.uscourts.gov online or by visiting the Clerk’s office of the Court (address below).