JND Legal Administration announces a proposed settlement in a class action lawsuit called Malone v Western Digital Corporation (ND Cal) Case No 5:20-cv-03584

What is this about?  Plaintiffs alleged that Western Digital misrepresented its WD Red NAS hard drives as suitable for use in NAS (Network Attached Storage) devices because the drives use SMR (Shingled Magnetic Recording) technology Nicholas Malone Chris Ayers James Backus Brian Conway David Eaton Steven Gravel James Raaymakers and Tod Weitzel are the plaintiffs in the filed class action lawsuit against Western Digital The operative complaint in this case is available at wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom Western Digital denies these allegations denies that SMR is inferior technology or that it did anything wrong Defendant contends that its SMR-based Red NAS drives were designed and extensively tested for use in the applications for which they were marketed and Western Digital believes that the drives perform well in and are suitable for use in NAS devices employed in appropriate applications and workloads The settlement if approved resolves the case and provides benefits to Settlement Class Members who do not exclude themselves

Who is included?  The Settlement Class consists of all consumers in the United States who purchased a WD Red NAS Drive using SMR technology between October 2018 and July 21 2021 or who received a WD Red NAS Drive using SMR as a replacement drive from Western Digital The specific hard drive models are: WD20EFAX (2TB capacity) WD30EFAX (3TB capacity) WD40EFAX (4TB capacity) and WD60EFAX (6TB capacity) hard drives

What can I get?  Under the proposed settlement Western Digital will pay $27 million to create a settlement fund If the settlement is approved and becomes final payments will be issued to consumers who are part of the Settlement Class You must file a claim to receive a payment (see below) Payment amounts will be based on which hard drives a person purchased and the number of hard drives purchased The purchasers of 2TB and 3TB WD Red NAS Drives will receive $400 for each drive purchased and purchasers of 4TB and 6TB WD Red NAS Drives will receive $700 for each drive purchased which may be adjusted on a pro-rata basis depending on the number of claims filed The maximum payout per Claim if there is a pro-rata upward adjustment will be as high as 85% of the MSRP value of the drive purchased 

How do I get a payment?  You must file a claim by November 8 2021 to receive a settlement payment You can file a claim online at wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom/claim Or you can download a claim form at wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom fill it out and submit it by mail Payments will be issued to valid claimants by mailed check 

What are my options?  You can file a claim receive a payment if the settlement becomes final and give up the right to sue Western Digital about the issues in this lawsuit If you do nothing you will receive no payment and if the settlement becomes final you will give up the right to sue Western Digital and its affiliates about the issues in this lawsuit For a complete list of Western Digital's affiliates that are being released by the settlement in this action please visit wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom You can exclude yourself receive no payment under this settlement and retain any right you have to sue Western Digital about the issues in this lawsuit To exclude yourself mail a signed written request for exclusion containing the information described at wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom postmarked by December 3 2021 to: Malone v Western Digital Corporation c/o JND Legal Administration PO Box 1107 Seattle WA 98111 If you do not exclude yourself and the Court approves the settlement you will be bound by the Court's orders and judgments and will release your claims relating to this lawsuit If you do not exclude yourself you can object to or comment on the settlement and/or Settlement Class Counsel's request for attorneys' fees expenses and service awards for the plaintiffs who brought this case on behalf of the Settlement Class To object you must submit a signed written objection containing the information described at wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom to the Court by December 3 2021 Visit wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom for more information

What happens next?  The Court will hold a hearing on December 22 2021 at 2:00 pm PT at the United States District Court for the Northern District of California San Jose Courthouse Courtroom 5 280 South 1st Street San Jose CA 95113 to decide whether to approve the settlement attorneys' fees and expenses for the attorneys who worked representing the Settlement Class (up to one-third to be paid from the $27 million settlement fund) and service awards of up to $2500 to each of the plaintiffs who brought this case on behalf of the Settlement Class You or your attorney may ask permission to speak at the hearing at your own cost The date and time of this hearing may change without further notice and/or the Court could order that this hearing be held remotely or telephonically Check wwwWDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom for updates

Who represents me?  The Court has appointed Bursor & Fisher PA and Hattis & Lukacs to represent the Settlement Class Together these lawyers are called Settlement Class Counsel You do not need to pay these lawyers out of your pocket Instead these lawyers will apply for compensation out of the settlement fund If you want to be represented by your own lawyer you may hire one at your own expense

How do I get more information?  For more information including to view copies of case documents the full settlement agreement the complaint in the lawsuit and Settlement Class Counsel's fee application (once it is filed) visit WDRedNASHarddriveSettlementcom You can also call 1-833-677-1089 or contact Settlement Class Counsel at [email protected]