Here is how the class action lawsuit process works. A number of people discover a problem with a product, service, company or process and they seek help from the company that has caused the issue. When nothing happens, they band together to sue the company that has acted inappropriately.
Typically, a class action suit covers one of four main areas of law:- Anti-trust law Violation Class Actions– This might include price-fixing conspiracies or cases involving large companies who may be monopolizing an area of business that ends up effecting a number of people.
- Securities Law Violation Class Actions- This might include false financial statements or market manipulation in terms of investments and stocks. Securities class actions work well in this type of situation because small investors don’t have sufficient financial stake to sue, but in a class action suit, everyone can be compensated.
- Consumer Fraud Class Actions– If a company or individual has falsely advertised their services or product and a number of people have been effected or victimized.
- Human and Civil Rights Violations Class Actions– This could be related to sex, age or racial discrimination on a broad scope, like in the case of Wal-Mart.
- Employee Benefits Disputes Class Actions– If a company is not fulfilling its obligations in terms of employee benefits like time off, proper compensation or promised benefits that are not fulfilled.
- Environmental, Toxic and other Mass Injury or Liability Class Action Lawsuits – This might cover defective products or defective pharmaceuticals or medical devices. This is also similar to the widely publicized lawsuit of PG&E (Pacific, Gas and Electric) outlined in the movie Erin Brockovich.
Once the grounds for a class action lawsuit have been established, the next step is for the group to find an attorney to represent them in their case. There are many firms that specialize in these massive class action suits and they will typically coordinate all of the complex logistics. In some cases, individual class action attorneys will take on a case and then ultimately hand the case over to a more experienced firm. Most class action attorneys will take the case on for no fees up front but they will demand a certain percentage of the class action settlement for compensation.
The class action attorney will then file a suit against the company in the court. There are federal class action suits and state specific class action suits and your attorney will be able to advise you as to which one is more appropriate.
In a class action lawsuit, one or two “lead” plaintiffs are identified and used to represent the larger groups of plaintiffs. Once the lawsuit is filed, the class action attorney or firm will then take depositions from all of the plaintiffs to both establish their case and to prove to the court that all of the plaintiffs have similar circumstances that can be addressed in a class action lawsuit. When that burden of proof has been met, the court will certify the suit as a class action lawsuit.
At this point, the class action lawsuit has been filed officially and the case can move forward, either through the courts or towards a settlement between the company and plaintiffs.