Google $62 Million Location-Data Settlement Finalized by Judge

A federal judge approved a $62 million class-action settlement arising from Google Inc.'s alleged tracking and storage of the mobile-device user-location data of nearly 250 million US users.

The final approval order, from the US District Court for Northern California, follows preliminary approval last November. The lawsuit was filed in 2018, alleging that Google violated Californian’s constitutional right to privacy by collecting the data despite users disabling “location history.”

The case underwent two rounds of motions to dismiss before parties agreed to settle in principle in September 2022, according to Judge Edward J. Davila’s order dated May 3.

The settlement class covers all users whose location data was collected while being opted out from January 1, 2014, through the notice date. As part of the settlement Google will be obligated to notify all users with location history enabled explaining how the feature and related settings work. The company is also required to maintain a policy for three years to automatically delete that data by default no longer than 18 months after users opt-in to collection.

Twenty-one nonprofit recipients will receive settlement funds “to further the data privacy interests” of class members.

“The Court finds that the cy press recipients will appropriately use the Settlement Fund to further their advocacy for data privacy nationwide such that the Settlement Class will ultimately enjoy greater data privacy protections as a result,” Davila wrote.

Counsel for the class was awarded $18.6 million in attorneys’ fees and more than $150,000 in litigation expenses. Class representatives were granted a service award of $5,000 each.

Carney Bates & Pulliam, PLLC, Williams Hart & Boundas, and Ahdoot & Wolfson, PC represent the plaintiff class. Keker, Van Nest & Peters LLP represents Google.

In re: Google Location History Litigation, N.D. Cal., No. 5:18-cv-05062, final settlement approval 5/3/24.