About Class Action Lawsuits And Why They Are Important

A class action lawsuit is a lawsuit filed on behalf of a large group of people, all of whom were affected financially or injured by an act of negligence committed by a single individual, organization, or business entity. Class action lawsuits become necessary when there are simply too many plaintiffs to reasonably try individual cases against a single defendant; in many cases, there would not be nearly enough funds to cover all possible damages. Instead, a single award is sought in a class action lawsuit, to be divided among those who joined the action. While the damage caused by the negligent action might vary from person to person, the negligent action, itself, must be the same.

The most common class action lawsuits involve defective products, in which a common design, manufacturing, or marketing defect injured a large number of consumers. Most notably, many drug manufacturers have been subjected to class action lawsuits due to their releasing dangerous drugs onto the marketplace, often after having failed to conduct thorough research into the effects of the drugs, concealing or misstating information gathered during research, or failing to warn consumers of possible risks.

Another common type of class action lawsuit involves employment law. If an entire group of employees, for example, is injured (whether financially or physically) due to the negligent actions of their employer, the employer may be held liable for any losses and expenses that result.

Because the damages awarded in a class action lawsuit must be split among many parties, there may be some people who join in the suit who are not fully compensated for their losses and expenses. However, awarding partial compensation to multiple plaintiffs is viewed as fairer under the law than forcing plaintiffs to wait years, if not decades, to pursue justice against a negligent party, one which will likely have no money at all to spare after the first several lawsuits.

By: Daniel Beasley

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