Seattle, Federal Way Public Schools Data Breach Settlement

Danielle Toth

Editor

Published

September 23, 2026 4:59 PM

Updated

September 23, 2026

Who can file a claim?

Individuals are considered class members if:

Seattle Public Schools or Federal Way Public Schools provided their information to Carruth Compliance Consulting Inc.
The data breach Carruth disclosed in January 2025 compromised their information.

To confirm eligibility, class members must either have received a notice by mail regarding the breach or be able to provide the name and address to which the administrator sent the notice.

How much can class members receive?

The settlement provides two main types of compensation for eligible class members:

Reimbursement for out-of-pocket losses: Up to $5,000 per person for documented expenses directly related to the data breach and not previously reimbursed by a third party. Out-of-pocket losses may include:

Postage, copying, scanning and faxing costs
Mileage and other travel-related charges
Parking and notary fees
Research charges
Cell phone charges (if charged by the minute), long-distance phone charges, data charges (if charged based on data used) and text message charges (if charged by the message)
Bank fees, accountant fees and attorney fees
Identity theft insurance product costs
Credit reports or credit monitoring costs for products purchased as a result of the breach

Pro rata cash payment: Up to $599 per person. The settlement administrator will determine the pro rata cash payment by dividing the remaining funds in the settlement pool among all class members after it pays all valid claims and costs.

How to claim a settlement payment

Class members can file a claim online or download, print and complete a PDF claim form and mail it to the settlement administrator.

Settlement administrator's mailing address: Fitch, et al. v. Seattle Public Schools and Federal Way Public Schools, c/o Claims Administrator, 1650 Arch St., Suite 2210, Philadelphia, PA 19103

The claim deadline is Dec. 2, 2026.

Is proof or documentation necessary to submit a claim?

Yes. Class members must provide documentation to support claims for out-of-pocket losses. Acceptable documentation includes receipts, bank or credit card statements, or other third-party records showing the data breach caused the expense. Self-prepared documents (such as handwritten receipts) are not sufficient by themselves but can supplement other evidence.

For the pro rata cash payment, claimants must verify their class membership, either by providing the unique identifier from the notice letter or by confirming their name and address as used in the January 2025 notification.

Payout options

The settlement does not specify the method of payment.

$300,000 settlement fund breakdown

The $300,000 settlement fund will cover:

Settlement administration costs: To be determined
Attorneys' fees: Up to $100,000
Attorneys' expenses: To be determined
Service awards to class representatives: Up to $5,000 each ($15,000 total)
Payments to approved class members: Remainder of the fund after other costs

Important dates

Deadline to opt out: Nov. 2, 2026
Deadline to file a claim: Dec. 2, 2026
Final fairness hearing: Dec. 18, 2026

When is the Fitch, et al. v. Seattle Public Schools, et al. payout date?

The settlement administrator will distribute payments after the court resolves any appeals and grants final approval of the settlement.

Why is there a class action settlement?

The class action lawsuit claimed a cyber incident in December 2024 compromised personal information held by Carruth Compliance Consulting Inc., a vendor for Seattle Public Schools and Federal Way Public Schools. The plaintiffs alleged the defendants failed to adequately protect their data.

The defendants deny any wrongdoing but agreed to settle to avoid the risks and costs of continued litigation and to provide compensation to affected individuals.