6 August 2024. Tycko & Zavareei LLP is pleased to announce that Partner Sabita Soneji has been appointed to serve as a member of the Plaintiffs’ Executive Committee for the proposed putative classes in the class action lawsuit stemming from the Ascension Health data breach.
The court’s appointment of Ms. Soneji to the Interim Executive Committee is a testament to her extensive experience and proficiency in handling complex class actions, particularly those involving data breaches. In the order appointing leadership for the case, the Court highlighted that “these attorneys have extensive experience with class actions, especially those relating to data breaches, and they have demonstrated that they have sufficient resources to prosecute this action through their efforts in this case and their swift coordination of the proposed leadership structure.” The court also noted the collaborative efforts of the proposed members, many of whom are already working together on other major data breach class actions.
Overview of the Data Breach Class Action
On May 8, Ascension, one of the largest health systems in the country that operates 140 hospitals across 19 states and the District of Columbia, detected unusual activity in its electronic health record systems and other network systems, which was later identified as a ransomware attack. The breach exposed the personally identifying and private health information of thousands of people.
In addition, the breach caused tremendous disruption to patients who could not timely receive care or get prescriptions filled and has raised significant concerns among patients and stakeholders, prompting class actions to address the harm and ensure accountability.
Ms. Soneji said about the leadership appointment, “I am honored to be appointed to leadership in this class action lawsuit. This data breach has profoundly affected the lives of many individuals, including patients who never imagined that Ascension would fail to protect their private health information, and I am committed to ensuring that their voices are heard and their rights are protected.”
The case is Negron v. Ascension Health, Case No. 4:24-CV-669-JAR in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri, Eastern Division.