Class Action Lawsuit
Class action lawsuits are a different breed a lawsuit. They are different from regular lawsuits in many ways. The main way they vary is that they involve a number of people as opposed to one single party bringing a single claim. There are many different legal procedural rules that apply to class action lawsuits.
There are often numerous attorneys who work on a class action lawsuit, as opposed to just one individual attorney. By working together this provides a benefit for the entire class of claimants. The collaboration of multiple attorneys is unique as you as the claimant get to benefit from the work product of all attorneys who are involved in representing the class. So, for example, the work that one attorney does for his client in the class action can benefit the class overall as a whole.
Class action lawsuits are brought for numerous types of claims. They can be claims against manufacturers of products, landowners, service providers, medical device manufacturers, governmental agencies, and the list goes on. The only requirement for a class action lawsuit is there be a designated group of people who were affected or injured and once those people are identified they fall within the “class”.
The biggest hurdle most class action lawsuits face is getting the class certified. Whether the class will be certified is an issue that is decided by the judge. The judge will determine whether or not the individuals in the class have all similar claims and have all suffered the same similar injury. Whether a class is certified is thus an extremely important issue. Once the court has certified a class, any individual who falls within the requirements can join in the class action lawsuit.
Class action lawsuits almost always involve hundreds of individual claimants who have suffered a similar injury. Because there are so many individuals in the class action and because there are so many legal issues, these claims can often take years to reach ultimate resolution.
However, there are many benefits to being involved in the class action. Often class actions are against large entities which are often not intimidated or moved by one person’s claim. But, when an army of individuals gets together it puts them on a more equal playing field with these large entities. In sum, the collective power of hundreds of claimants is often more powerful than one individual claimant.
At Manard Law, we enjoy collaborating with attorneys handling class actions. Since we are a boutique firm, we are able to provide great attention to our clients, so they do not feel they are just another number of the class. We work with our clients collaboratively with other firms to ensure we are protecting our clients’ rights.
If you have a question regarding a class action or we are happy to give you a free consultation to answer any concern you may have. We always take the time to listen to our clients. Most class actions are started because people contact attorneys about how they have been wronged. If you feel you and/or a number of other people have been wronged and you are interested in hiring an attorney, please contact us today.