Class Action Lawsuits Written by Margaret Wommack A class action is a civil lawsuit filed by multiple people who experienced same injury from same product, a single trial to hear all claims. The difference between their cases as individuals is only extent to which each was injured. For instance, one anti-inflammatory medication user who developed SJS may have associated rash while another may have lung damage and blindness as well. Often when a party was injured by a product but they do not have a strong enough case to file an individual lawsuit against company, they can band together with others who suffered injury from same product to make their case stronger by numbers. Another benefit of class action lawsuits is pursuing a suit for only small losses. For example, $100 spent on a product that doesn’t work or spent to correct problems product causes is a mall amount of money and does not justify expense and time of filing a lawsuit. However, many people who have all lost $100 can band together and file a class action suit, splitting amongst them cost of lawyer fees and filing suit, and can hope for a settlement to be reached. If not for class action suits, that $100 lost, small in court’s eyes but substantial to individual, could never be recovered and company responsible for faulty product would never have to reform. Class action lawsuits are most often for defective products, asbestos, prescription drug side effects or tobacco. If your case involves people across state borders then you may file a Federal class action. These suits are much more complicated and require a good, experienced lawyer. Class Action Suit Written by Margaret Wommack A class action suit is a lawsuit against a company by multiple plaintiffs who were similarly injured by defendant. Class actions are especially good for people who individually have only sustained less than a few thousand dollars of damage. The cost of an individual suit would negate possible recovery if they were even to win, but in a class action suit, cost of filing and paying lawyer fees is split between all plaintiffs. Also, they gain strength in numbers and have a more air-tight case to bring to court. Thus class action suits are often a better assurance that a satisfactory settlement will be reached. However benefits of class action suits are in heavy debate. One topic people focus on is a coupon settlement Cont'd on page 2 ==>   ImproveHomeLife.com © 2005 Terms of Use