The Economist declared that the world’s most valuable resource is no longer oil but data. The global economy runs on information, available in microseconds at the touch of a button, 24 hours daily. The data can be for marketing and advertising, medical care, banking and finance, hospitality, product development, and anywhere business intelligence and the delivery of products and services are needed. However, as businesses develop ways to monetize this data, there is tremendous pressure to protect sensitive data from misuse and theft. What data is collected, how it is stored and secured, and how it is used and disposed of are currently under scrutiny by regulators, governments, and now, litigators. This panel will look at lessons learned from prior data breach and privacy litigation and the impending “perfect storm” that will drive more and more of these complicated, multifaceted lawsuits. We will examine what differentiates this type of class action litigation, how the courts approach them, the unique discovery challenges, and how Special Masters and Court Appointed Neutrals to assist the judiciary with these cases.