If you have been injured physically or emotionally, or have experienced financial loss or property damage at the hands of a person, company, or corporation, you have the right to file a legal claim in a court of law. Do you have a claim? Learn about what this process is like and how to decide if it is right for you.
If you are not the only victim, you may be in a position to pursue a mass tort lawsuit. However, sometimes a class action lawsuit might best suit your needs best. Class actions are similar to mass torts, but do have some differences. Continue reading below to learn more about class action lawsuits, mass tort lawsuits, their benefits and limitations.
Mass tort lawsuits occur when multiple victims — the plaintiffs — all have been wronged and file claims against the same transgressor — the defendant. Your case will be individually considered by the court, but with multiple other similar cases being filed together, your chances of succeeding in court are high. And, your reward when the case is won will specifically address your personal injuries, separate from the other victims.
Class-action lawsuits also occur when a large number of victims have all been wronged by the same transgressor, or defendant. However, in class actions, each victim’s case is not individually considered.
In class-action lawsuits, one victim, or a small group of victims, file a claim against the person, company, or corporation who has wronged them. These victims, called plaintiffs, serve as the class representatives of the class. There could be many other victims, sometimes even hundreds of thousands of victims.
All of these other victims are called class members. When class members join the lawsuit, they do not have to pay any legal fees, and will all equally share the settlement fee when the case is won.
Sometimes, when the defendant who is being sued by the victims is such a large corporation, victims don’t even know the lawsuit exists. Many victims only learn they have a right to cash payouts when they receive a letter in the mail by the law firm representing other victims. They may then qualify to receive compensation.
Learning about existing mass tort and class-action lawsuits can help you determine whether you are a victim who deserves pay-outs from the company that wronged you. Click to the next slide to learn more about mass torts and class action lawsuits.
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