Connection lost
Server error
PAUL v. PROVIDENCE HEALTH SYSTEM-OREGON Case Brief
Why Top Law Students (And Those Aspiring to Be) Use LSD+ Briefs
Let's be real, law school is a marathon. Our exclusive Flash-to-Full case system is designed by Harvard Law School and MIT grads to match your pace: Quick summaries when you're slammed, detailed analysis when you need to go deep. Only LSD+ offers this kind of flexibility to genuinely fit your study flow.
Adaptive Case Views
Toggle between Flash, Standard, and Expanded. Get what you need, when you need it.
Exam-Ready IRAC Format
We deliver the precise structure professors look for in exam answers.
Complex Cases, Clarified
We break down dense legal reasoning into something digestible, helping you grasp core concepts.
Case Brief Summary & Legal Analysis
tl;dr: A hospital’s negligence led to the theft of patient data. The court denied recovery for credit monitoring costs and emotional distress because plaintiffs suffered no actual identity theft or financial loss, only the risk of future harm, which is not a legally cognizable injury.
Legal Significance: Establishes that the mere risk of future identity theft, without actual misuse of stolen data, does not constitute a legally cognizable injury for negligence claims. Prophylactic measures like credit monitoring are not recoverable as damages in the absence of a present harm.
PAUL v. PROVIDENCE HEALTH SYSTEM-OREGON Law School Study Guide
Use this case brief structure for your own legal analysis. Focus on the IRAC methodology to excel in law school exams and cold calls.
Case Facts & Court Holding
Key Facts & Case Background
An employee of defendant Providence Health System-Oregon, a healthcare provider, left computer disks and tapes containing the unencrypted personal information of approximately 365,000 patients in a car. The data, which included names, Social Security numbers, and patient care information, was subsequently stolen. Plaintiffs, patients whose information was on the stolen media, filed a class action lawsuit alleging common law negligence and negligence per se. They sought economic damages for the past and future costs of credit monitoring and other protective measures undertaken to mitigate the risk of identity theft. They also sought noneconomic damages for the emotional distress and worry caused by the increased risk. Critically, plaintiffs did not allege that any unauthorized person had ever accessed or used the stolen information, nor did they claim to have suffered any actual financial loss or identity theft as a result of the breach. The trial court granted defendant’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim, and the Court of Appeals affirmed.
Court Holding & Legal Precedent
Issue: Does the increased risk of future identity theft, and the costs incurred to mitigate that risk, constitute a legally cognizable harm sufficient to support a negligence claim when the stolen personal information has not been misused?
No. The court held that plaintiffs failed to state a claim for Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lor
IRAC Legal Analysis
Complete IRAC Analysis for Higher Grades
IRAC (Issue, Rule, Analysis, Conclusion) is the exact format professors want to see in your exam answers. Our exclusive Flash-to-Full briefs combine holding, analysis, and rule statements formatted to match what A+ students produce in exams. These structured briefs help reinforce the essential legal reasoning patterns expected in law school.
Legal Issue
Does the increased risk of future identity theft, and the costs incurred to mitigate that risk, constitute a legally cognizable harm sufficient to support a negligence claim when the stolen personal information has not been misused?
Conclusion
This case solidifies the requirement of a present, realized injury in data Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis n
Legal Rule
To state a claim for negligence, a plaintiff must allege a present, Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia des
Legal Analysis
The court's analysis centered on the well-established tort principle that a negligence Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia deserunt mollit anim id est laborum. Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam, quis nostrud exercitation ullamco laboris nisi ut aliquip ex ea commodo consequat. Duis aute irure dolor in reprehenderit in voluptate velit esse cillum dolore eu fugiat nulla pariatur. Excepteur sint occaecat cupidatat non proident, sunt in culpa qui officia dese
Flash-to-Full Case Opinions
Flash Summary
- A plaintiff cannot recover damages for a data breach based solely