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Class Action Lawsuits: Cases
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Class action lawsuits may be brought in federal court if the claim arises under federal law, or if all named representative members of the potential plaintiff class are from a different state than the defendant. Nationwide plaintiff classes are possible, but such suits must have a commonality of issues across state lines. This may be difficult if the civil law in the various states have significant differences. Large class actions brought in federal court frequently are consolidated for pre-trial purposes through the device of multidistrict litigation (MDL). It is ... possible to bring class action lawsuits under state law, and in some cases the court may extend its jurisdiction to all the members of the class, including out of state (or even internationally) as the key element is the jurisdiction that the court has over the defendant.
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Class action lawsuits allow numerous victims to obtain the quality legal representation they need in order to recover compensation from large corporations. Class actions are appropriate when everybody in the class has suffered the same wrong and a similar injury. In some cases, the injury to any one individual is small such that it would not make financial sense for the individual to bring a lawsuit. Without class action lawsuits, the cost of filing an individual claim would prevent the people who have been harmed from recovering anything and would allow large corporations to escape any liability.
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A class action suit allows victims of negligence or defective products to file lawsuits against organizations in a collective manner. A single individual or a small number of victims are able to file on behalf of all victims. In most cases, all victims who will be affected by a decision will be notified that an action has been started. They must then be given an opportunity to join the class action and appear and present their side of the case. The result of the class action will be binding on all parties in the case.
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In most class action lawsuits class members are represented by attorneys who are paid on a contingency fee basis. This means that the attorneys representing the class do not receive compensation unless the lawsuit results in some significant benefit to the class. In this regard, class action lawyers allow their compensation to be approved and awarded by the court based on the common good achieved for class members. If class counsel recover nothing for the class, then they are not rewarded for their efforts. If a recovery is obtained, application for payment of the legal fees is made to the court and the court approves and awards the amount to be paid. Class members and class representatives do not pay for any legal fees associated with the case.
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The reason is a bill the House approved yesterday by a vote of 279-149 that critics say will make it harder for people such as Hartwig to pursue class-action lawsuits. The bill, which could become law as soon as today, shifts most future class-action cases to federal courts from state courts. If Hartwig had waited and filed her case next week when the new law will likely be in effect instead of 2001, her chances of winning would be much lower, attorney Beth Terrell said.
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Class action cases for a few hundred or a few thousand dollars in losses by each victim can make sense. Even a small recovery is better than none. Yet, those with claims of $50,000 or more should instead discuss their options with an attorney skilled that area of the law and in representing victims in their own claims. Free consultations can be available to do this.
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