Frequently Asked Questions

A Court authorized the Long Notice because you have a right to know how the proposed Settlement may affect your rights. The Long Notice explains the nature of the litigation, the general terms of the proposed Settlement, and what it may mean to you. The Long Notice also explains the ways you may participate in, or exclude yourself from, the Settlement or get more information about the Settlement.

The Complaint in this case alleges that MMC discovered in or about April 2023 that MMC’s computer systems and electronic data systems were the subject of a ransomware attack by third party criminals, during which the third-party criminals gained access to certain private information and personally identifiable health information of certain of MMC’s patients and employees. MMC promptly notified all potentially affected persons of the event and offered them certain identity theft protection and credit monitoring services free of charge for a certain period of time. These lawsuits allege that MMC’s negligence and breach of other statutory and common law duties contributed to the third-party criminals gaining access to the systems that housed the data of Settlement Class Members. MMC denies all such allegations made in the lawsuit and does not make any admission of guilt or wrongdoing by entering into the Settlement. No court or other entity has made any findings that MMC was negligent or that any law or duty has been violated by MMC.

The various complaints filed in this Litigation, were consolidated in Sherri Krenk, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. Murfreesboro Medical Clinic P.A. d/b/a Murfreesboro Medical Clinic and Surgicenter, Case No. 75CC1-2023-CV-81005 (Ruth. Cir. Ct.), describe the specific legal claims alleged by Plaintiffs and the relief sought, and are available on this Settlement Website here. You can also find a copy of the Court’s orders regarding this Settlement at here.

The defendant is Murfreesboro Medical Cinic, P.A., a physician-owned ambulatory clinic with its principal place of business in Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

In a class action, one or more people file a lawsuit to assert legal claims on behalf of themselves and other persons who have interacted with the defendant in the same or a similar way. Here, named Plaintiffs and Class Representatives Pamela Taylor, Alisha Holmes, Thomas Stoquert III, Angela Stoquert, individually and as next friend of E.S., and Wyatt A. Stoquert, Genna Holder, individually and on behalf of two minor children, Brenda Scales, Donna Scott, and Sherri Krenk filed this Litigation on behalf of all persons who were sent notice by MMC that their information may have been accessed in the ransomware attack MMC experienced in April 2023.

Even if you have not filed your own lawsuit against MMC regarding the allegations described in this Settlement Website, if you are a Settlement Class Member, this Settlement still affects you because the Settlement applies to all Settlement Class Members.

The Court has not decided whether MMC did anything wrong at all and has not decided in favor of either the Class or MMC on the ultimate merits of any of Plaintiffs’ claims. Instead, both sides agreed to a Settlement. Settlements avoid the costs, burdens, delay and uncertainty of a trial and appeals while providing agreed benefits to Settlement Class Members when the Settlement becomes final. Class Representatives and the attorneys for the Settlement Class (“Class Counsel,” identified in Question 9 of the FAQs), believe that the Settlement is in the best interests of the Settlement Class and Settlement Class Members.

The Court has appointed Kroll Settlement Administration, LLC (“Kroll”) as the Settlement Administrator. The Settlement Administrator’s role is to effectuate the Court-approved class notice program, receive, validate, and facilitate payment of the Settlement Class Members’ Valid Claims, and generally administer the Settlement as provided in the Settlement Agreement.

You are part of the Settlement if you are in the Settlement Class. The Court decided that, if the Settlement is approved, the Settlement Class will include “all persons whose Private Information may have been compromised as a result of the Data Breach that MMC discovered in or about April 2023, and to whom MMC sent or caused to be sent notice of the Data Breach, whether or not the addressee received that notice.”

Yes. The Settlement Class specifically excludes: (i) MMC, and its officers and directors; (ii) all Settlement Class Members who timely and validly request exclusion from the Settlement Class; (iii) the presiding judge, and his or her staff and family; and (iv) any other Person found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be guilty under criminal law of initiating, causing, aiding or abetting the criminal activity occurrence of the Data Breach or who pleads nobo contendere to any such charge.

If you are a Settlement Class Member, you have lawyers for purposes of pursuing approval of the Settlement and having it enforced if it is approved. The Court appointed the following persons and firms as “Class Counsel” to represent the Settlement Class as a whole in connection with the proposed Settlement: J. Gerard Stranch IV of Stranch, Jennings, & Garvey, LLC (Lead Class Counsel); Danielle Perry of Mason, LLP; Philip Krzeski of Chestnut Cambronne; Christopher D. Jennings of Jennings, PLLC; Tyler Bean of Siri & Glimstad LLP; and Samantha E. Holbrook of Shub & Johns LLC (Additional Class Counsel). If you want to be represented by your own lawyer, for purposes of objecting to the settlement or otherwise, you may hire one at your own expense if you choose to do so.

Class Counsel will apply to the Court for an award of attorneys’ fees and expenses not to exceed three hundred fifty thousand dollars ($350,000). Any amount the Court awards in attorneys’ fees and expenses shall not exceed $350,000 and shall be paid by MMC separately from any payment to Settlement Class Members.

Class Counsel will also ask the Court to approve a service award of $3,000 each for the named Plaintiffs who filed these consolidated lawsuits on behalf of the Settlement Class, as an award for their service to the Settlement Class in obtaining this Settlement.

Class Counsel’s application for attorneys’ fees, expenses, and service awards will be made available on the Settlement Website here fifteen (15) days before the deadline for you to comment on or object to the Settlement or exclude yourself from it.

The Court will decide whether to award attorneys’ fees and expenses and service awards in those amounts or in lesser amounts. Any attorneys’ fees, expenses, or service awards approved by the Court will be paid by MMC separately from any payments to Settlement Class Members. 

Out-of-Pocket, Unreimbursed Expenses. All Settlement Class Members may submit a claim for up to $500 for reimbursement of unreimbursed out-of-pocket expenses the Settlement Class Member actually paid that were traceable to the Data Breach. Such out-of-pocket expenses would include, without limitation and by way of example, unreimbursed losses relating to fraud or identity theft; professional fees including attorneys’ fees, accountants’ fees, and fees for credit repair services; costs associated with freezing or unfreezing credit with any credit reporting agency; credit monitoring costs that were incurred on or after mailing of the notice of Data Breach, through the date of claim submission; and miscellaneous expenses such as notary, fax, postage, copying, mileage, and long-distance telephone charges. The claim must establish that the Settlement Class Member made reasonable efforts to avoid, or seek reimbursement for, the loss, including but not limited to exhaustion of all available credit monitoring insurance and identity theft insurance. No payment shall be made for emotional distress, personal/bodily injury, or punitive damages, such losses and damages are not recoverable under the Settlement Agreement.

Compensable Lost Time. Settlement Class Members are also eligible to receive reimbursement for up to two (2) hours of lost time spent dealing with the Data Breach (calculated at the rate of $25 per each hour spent). Claims for lost time not to exceed $50 comprise part of the $500 maximum for out-of-pocket reimbursements per the above paragraph. Settlement Claims for lost time are subject to proration if lost time claims exceed an aggregate classwide cap of $200,000. Lost time claims shall require a detailed description of how and why the time was spent and on what dates after the Data Breach the time was spent. All other expenses claimed shall require proof as described below.

Claim Forms. Settlement Class Members seeking reimbursement of either type described in the two paragraphs above must complete and submit a Claim Form to the Settlement Administrator, postmarked or submitted online on or before April 14, 2026. The Claim Form must be personally signed under penalty of perjury and verified by the Settlement Class Member with a statement that his or her claim is true and correct, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief. Notarization shall not be required. The Settlement Class Member must submit reasonable documentation that the out-of-pocket expenses and charges claimed were actually incurred, not reimbursed from any source prior to the date of the Settlement Claim, not reasonably avoidable by the claimant, and plausibly arose from the Data Breach. Failure to provide supporting documentation of the out-of-pocket expenses referenced above, as requested on the Claim Form, shall result in denial of a claim. “Self-prepared” documents such as handwritten receipts are, by themselves, insufficient to receive reimbursement, but may be considered to add clarity or support other submitted documentation. See Question 16 of the FAQs for further information on filing a claim.

Credit Monitoring. Defendant will offer Settlement Class members two (2) years’ credit monitoring and identity theft protection services at no cost to Class Members. The services will include credit monitoring and at least $1,000,000 in identity theft insurance. All Settlement Class Members will be eligible for two (2) years of coverage from the date of timely activation of their enrollment code following final approval of the Settlement. Enrollment codes and the deadline for their activation will be sent to class members following the Effective Date. The identity theft monitoring will include: (i) real time monitoring of the credit file at all three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax, and Transunion) for two (2) years; (ii) identity theft insurance of at least $1 million (no deductible); and (iii) access to fraud resolution agents to help investigate and resolve identity thefts.

Business Practices Changes. The Settling Parties agree that as part of the Settlement consideration, MMC, at its sole and separate expense, shall adopt, pay for, implement, and maintain the following business practices changes related to information security to safeguard personal information on its systems for a period of at least three years from the time when the applicable business practices change is initiated: (i) maintenance of a written information security program; (ii) employee training on data security policies and detecting/handling suspicious emails; (iii) implementation of appropriate firewall and segregation protocols; (iv) development of an appropriate protocol for deletion of records; and (v) maintenance of a policy for responding to data security events. Before the final approval hearing, MMC shall submit a certification confirming its compliance with these business practices changes.

Counsel for the parties exchanged significant information about the Data Breach, the relief made available to affected persons by MMC voluntarily before any suit was filed, and the number of persons whose data was housed in the files to which the third-party criminals gained access, then worked with an independent mediator to try to resolve this case. Ultimately, with the assistance and concurrence of the independent mediator, all parties concluded and agreed that this Settlement and the Settlement benefits offered to Settlement Class Members were in all respects fair, reasonable, and adequate for all Settlement Class Members. The Court has preliminarily agreed, subject to considering any comments or objections from Settlement Class Members.

Settlement Class Members who submit a Valid Claim will receive a check for the monetary benefits to which they are entitled.

If any checks remain uncashed 120 days after their issue date, the checks will become void, the amount of those uncashed checks will be donated to The MMC Foundation and the payee will be deemed to have waived his or her right to receive the amount of the check but will still be bound by the Settlement and will still have released MMC from the Released Claims.

The Court holds the Final Approval Hearing on January 16, 2026, at 9:00 a.m. CT, thereafter grants final approval to the Settlement, and all rights of appeal are exhausted. If there is no appeal, payment of Settlement Benefits is likely to be completed during or before the second quarter of 2026. If there is an appeal, no payment will be due until the appeal is over, and then only if approval of the Settlement is upheld on appeal.

No. Each Settlement Class Member who submits a timely and Valid Claim for compensation will be paid based on the amount of out-of-pocket expenses and lost time he or she properly documents in the claim submission, subject the terms and limitations set forth in the Settlement. Each Settlement Class Member is entitled to submit only one Settlement Claim.

Claim Forms. Settlement Class Members seeking reimbursement of either type described in the two paragraphs above must complete and submit a Claim Form to the Settlement Administrator, postmarked or submitted online on or before April 14, 2026.The Claim Form must be personally signed under penalty of perjury and verified by the Settlement Class Member with a statement that his or her claim is true and correct, to the best of his or her knowledge and belief. Notarization shall not be required. The Settlement Class Member must submit reasonable documentation that the out-of-pocket expenses and charges claimed were actually incurred, not reimbursed from any source prior to the date of the claim, not reasonably avoidable by the claimant, and plausibly arose from the Data Breach. Failure to provide supporting documentation of the out-of-pocket expenses referenced above, as requested on the Claim Form, shall result in denial of a claim. “Self-prepared” documents such as handwritten receipts are, by themselves, insufficient to receive reimbursement, but may be considered to add clarity or support other submitted documentation.

The Claims Deadline is April 14, 2026 (this is the postmark deadline for mailed claims and the electronic submission deadline for claims submitted online). Mailed Claim Forms should be sent to: 

Settlement Administrator – 83284 
c/o Kroll Settlement Administration
PO Box 225391
New York, NY 10150-5391.

No. Each Settlement Class Member may submit only one Claim Form.

The Settlement Administrator may reject Claim Forms that are duplicates of another claim, are reasonably suspected to be fraudulent, are submitted after the deadline, or do not contain all required information and a personal signature. The Settlement Administrator may also reject Claim Forms submitted by individuals it reasonably determines are not members of the Settlement Class. Before rejecting a claim, the Settlement Administrator may notify the claimant to give the claimant an opportunity to correct any deficiency.

If, after you submit a Claim Form, you change your mailing address, email address, or the electronic payment information provided on your Claim Form, it is your responsibility to inform the Settlement Administrator of your updated information. You may do so by contacting the Settlement Administrator using the contact information in Question 31 of the FAQs.

If you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement Class, you will stay in the Settlement Class and you will therefore be giving up what are called “Released Claims” against the “Released Parties” as these terms are fully defined in Paragraph 1.23 and Paragraph 1.24 of the Settlement Agreement, which is available here. This means, among other things, that you are giving up the right to claim compensation from MMC (or any other parties defined as Released Parties in the Settlement Agreement) for any claims that were or could have been raised in any of these lawsuits relating to the Data Breach or for any other claims that relate in whole or in part to or arise in whole or in part from the Data Breach. The Persons you are releasing include MMC, its physicians, officers, directors, members, vendors, insurers, agents, employees, insurers, and representatives, among others.
 

All the decisions by the Court will bind you unless you exclude yourself from the Settlement (see Questions 27 and 28 of the FAQs).
 

Again, Paragraph 1.23 and Paragraph 1.24 of the Settlement Agreement define the claims that will be released by Settlement Class Members who do not exclude themselves from the Settlement and the parties who will be released. You can access the Settlement Agreement and read the details of the legal claims being released at Documents Page. If you have any questions about what this means, you can contact Class Counsel or the Settlement Administrator (see Questions 9 and 31 of the FAQs).

If you do not exclude yourself from the Settlement, you can ask the Court to deny approval by filing an objection. You can object to any aspect of the Settlement, to Class Counsel’s request for attorneys’ fees and expenses, to the certification of the Settlement Class, to the request for service awards, or anything else about this case.

Objecting to the Settlement means asking the Court to deny approval to the Settlement. The Court can only approve or reject the Settlement. If the Court denies approval of the Settlement, MMC will not be required to comply with the terms of the Settlement Agreement, no Settlement payments will be sent out, and the Litigation will continue. If that is what you want to happen, you may object.
 

Any objection to the proposed settlement must be submitted in writing and must state: (i) the case name and docket number, Krenk et al. v. Murfreesboro Medical Clinic, P.A. d/b/a/ Murfreesboro Medical Clinic & Surgicenter, Case No. 75CC1-2023-CV-81005 (16th Judicial Cir. Ct., Rutherford Cty.); (ii) the objector’s full name, address, telephone number, and email address (if any); (iii) information identifying the objector as a Settlement Class Member, including proof that the objector is a member of the Settlement Class (e.g., a copy of original notice of the Data Breach or a copy of the Short Notice of this Settlement addressed to said objector); (iv) a written statement of all grounds for the objection, accompanied by any legal support for the objection the objector believes applicable; (v) a statement as to whether the objection applies only to the objector, to a specific subset of the class, or to the entire class; (vi) the identity of any and all counsel representing the objector in connection with the objection; (vii) a statement as to whether the objector and/or his or her counsel will appear at the Final Approval Hearing, and (viii) the objector’s personal signature and, if the objector is represented by counsel, the signature of the objector’s duly authorized attorney. To be timely, written notice of an objection in the appropriate form must be filed with the Clerk of the Court, Rutherford County, Circuit Civil Court Clerk, 116 W. Lytle St., Room 106, Murfreesboro, TN 37130, in Krenk et al. v. Murfreesboro Medical Clinic, P.A. d/b/a/ Murfreesboro Medical Clinic & Surgicenter, Case No. 75CC1-2023-CV-81005 (16th Judicial Cir. Ct., Rutherford Cty.), no later than sixty (60) days from the date on which notice program commences as provided in ¶ 3.2, and served concurrently therewith upon lead Class Counsel, J. Gerard Stranch, IV, Stranch, Jennings, & Garvey, PLLC, The Freedom Center, 223 Rosa L. Parks Avenue, Suite 200, Nashville, Tennessee 37203, and counsel for MMC, Kimberly M. Ingram-Hogan, Bradley Arant Boult Cummings, LLP, 1221 Broadway, Suite 2400, Nashville, TN 37203.
 

OBJECTIONS ARE WAIVED IF NOT POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE DECEMBER 15, 2025.

You object to the Settlement when you disagree with some aspect of the Settlement and think the Court should not give final approval of the Settlement. An objection, like a comment, allows your views to be heard in Court. If you submit an objection, you will still be bound by the Settlement if the Court overrules your objection.
 

Excluding yourself from the Settlement means that you are no longer a Settlement Class Member and don’t want the Settlement (including monetary payments) to apply to you. Once you are excluded, you lose any right to object to any aspect of the Settlement because the case no longer affects you.

If you file a timely written objection, you may (but are not required to) appear at the Final Approval Hearing, either in person or through your own attorney, as long as you state in your objection that you intend to appear at the hearing. If you appear through your own attorney, you are responsible for hiring and paying that attorney.

The Court will hold the Final Fairness Hearing before Judge Atwood at January 16, 2026, on 9:00 a.m. CT in courtroom 6B of the Rutherford County Judicial Center, 116 W. Lytle St., Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37130. The hearing may be postponed to a different date or time or location without notice except on the court’s docket and the Settlement Website. The hearing may be scheduled to occur telephonically or by video conference. Please check this Settlement Website for any updates about the Settlement or the Final Approval Hearing. If the date, time, or format, of the Final Approval Hearing changes, an update to the Settlement Website or the Court’s docket is the only way you will be informed of the change.
 

At the Final Approval Hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate. If there are objections, the Court will consider them. The Court may listen to people who appear at the hearing and who have provided notice of their intent to appear at the hearing (see Question 26 of the FAQs). The Court may also consider Class Counsel’s application for attorneys’ fees, expenses, and for each Class Representative’s Service Award. At or after the hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement and whether to approve Class Counsel’s application for attorneys’ fees, expenses, and each Class Representative’s Service Award.

No, you do not need to attend. You may attend at your own expense, if you wish, but you do not have to. If you submit a written objection, the Court will consider it even if you do not come to the hearing. If you want to speak at the hearing, you must say so in your objection. You may also pay your own lawyer to attend the hearing, but it is not required that you hire your own lawyer.

At the hearing, the Court will at its discretion hear any objections and arguments concerning the fairness of the Settlement and whether it should be approved.
 

As described more fully above in response to Question 24 of the FAQs, you are eligible to speak at the Final Approval Hearing if you (a) have mailed your written comment or objection to the Court on or before the postmark deadline, and (b) stated in your comment or objection that you intend to appear at the Final Approval Hearing.
 

You cannot speak at the hearing if you exclude yourself from the Settlement Class.

If you want to keep the right to sue or continue to sue MMC or the other released entities (see Question 21 of the FAQs) based on claims this settlement resolves, you must exclude yourself from the Settlement Class (sometimes called “opting out”).

To exclude yourself from the settlement, you must mail a request for exclusion to the Settlement Administrator. The request for exclusion must include:

1. The name and case number of this lawsuit (Sherri Krenk, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. Murfreesboro Medical Clinic P.A. d/b/a Murfreesboro Medical Clinic and Surgicenter, Case No. 75CC1-2023-CV-81005 (Ruth. Cir. Ct.));
2. Your full name and mailing address, email address, and telephone number;
3. A clear statement that you want to be excluded from the Settlement; and
4. Your handwritten or electronically imaged written (e.g., “DocuSign”) signature. An attorney’s signature, or a typed signature, is not sufficient.

You must mail your request for exclusion, postmarked no later than December 15, 2025, to: 

Settlement Administrator – 83284
c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC
PO Box 225391
New York, NY 10150-5391
 

You cannot exclude yourself by mailing a notification to any other location or after the deadline of December 15, 2025. You cannot exclude yourself by telephone or by email. Your exclusion letter must be signed by you, personally, and not your lawyer or anyone else acting on your behalf. “Mass” or “class” opt-outs made on behalf of multiple persons or classes of persons are not allowed and will be deemed invalid. No Settlement Class Member may submit an opt-out request for anyone but himself or herself.  

No. Unless you exclude yourself, you give up the right to sue MMC and the other released entities (see Question 20 of the FAQs) for the claims that this settlement resolves.

No. Proposed Class Counsel represents the Settlement Class as a whole. If you timely and properly exclude yourself from the Settlement Class, you are no longer part of the Settlement Class and are not represented by Proposed Class Counsel.

If you do nothing, and if the Settlement becomes Final, you will be part of the Settlement Class. By doing nothing, you will have not submitted a Valid Claim and therefore will not receive any monetary compensation from the Settlement. You will still give up your rights to sue (or continue to sue) MMC or the Released Parties (see Question 20 of the FAQs) for claims arising out of or related to the allegations in the Plaintiffs’ complaint.

The Long Notice summarizes the proposed Settlement. The precise terms are in the Settlement Agreement itself. You can get a copy of the Settlement Agreement, view other case documents, and get additional information, updates, and answers to Frequently Asked Questions, by visiting this Settlement Website.  

All of the case documents that have been filed publicly in this case are also available online through the Court’s Online Court Records System at https://rutherford.tncrtinfo.com. This case is called Sherri Krenk, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated v. Murfreesboro Medical Clinic P.A. d/b/a Murfreesboro Medical Clinic and Surgicenter, Case No. 75CC1-2023-CV-81005 (Ruth. Cir. Ct.).You may obtain case documents by visiting the office of the Clerk of the Court for Rutherford County, Circuit Civil Court Clerk, 116 W. Lytle St., Room 106, Murfreesboro, TN 37130 between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m., Monday through Friday, excluding Court holidays.
 

You can also get additional information, update your address, or request a copy of the Settlement Agreement by calling toll free (833) 630-8406, writing to the Settlement Administrator at Contact Us, OR by mail to

Settlement Administrator – 83284
c/o Kroll Settlement Administration LLC
PO Box 225391
New York, NY 10150-5391

PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE COURT OR THE COURT CLERK’S OFFICE TO INQUIRE ABOUT THIS SETTLEMENT OR THE CLAIM PROCESS.