Weee Moves to Dismiss Data Breach Class Action Under First-to-File Doctrine

Asian American grocery chain Weee seeks dismissal of the May 11 consolidated class action arising from a February data breach (see 2305120011) under the first-to-file doctrine and for the plaintiffs’ lack of standing and their failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted, said Weee’s memorandum Tuesday (docket 4:23-cv-02314) in U.S. District Court for Northern California in San Francisco in support of its motion to dismiss. The plaintiffs “wholly ignore the inescapable fact” that Weee immediately notified all potentially affected individuals of the breach, including the type of information that may have been impacted, it said. The data exposed in the breach was “non-sensitive in nature,” and didn’t include any personal identifiable information “as defined under applicable law,” it said. The complaint also “fails to acknowledge that there is already a putative class action pending” in the Southern District of New York stemming from the same breach that seeks to represent the same putative class, and was filed three months before the “instant action,” it said. It’s clear the complaint should be dismissed, because dismissal “is warranted under the first-to-file doctrine,” it said. The court alternatively should transfer this action under the first-to-file doctrine to the Southern District of New York, where Weee’s motion to dismiss remains pending, it said. Denying Weee’s motion under the first-to-file doctrine “would defy long-standing and controlling legal precedent and, worse, create the risk of inconsistent findings and great prejudice” to Weee, it said. If the court doesn't dismiss the case under the first-to-file doctrine, the complaint “still warrants dismissal,” it said.