In 2014, six institutions received approximately $5.3 million total for the purpose of educating the public on Internet privacy. [1] This was not spurred by a kind donation or an altruistic, astute public relations move; rather, the District Court for the Northern District of California ordered Google to do so as part of the settlement of a class action lawsuit in which these institutions had no part. This practice of distributing money from class action settlements to third-party non-profit organizations is known as cy pres (pronounced “sigh pray”), [2] and Rule 23(e) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure states that these settlements must be “fair, reasonable, and adequate.”

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