When reading a magazine or newspaper, you may have come across a section that discusses a lawsuit against a company by a group of people. This class action lawsuit may talk about problems regarding how the company did business, some type of defect in the product offered by the company, or medical problems that happened to numerous people due to the company’s products or services.
If you had used the company’s product, you could possibly be involved in this class action lawsuit brought about by the plaintiffs and their class action attorneys. So what are your rights in this class action lawsuit?
What Is A Class Action Lawsuit?
A class action lawsuit is filed when there are a large number of complaints filed against a defendant. This is considered a class action, because the “class” is the entire group of people who have the same grievance but cannot all be named in the lawsuit due to the large number of people involved.
Class action lawsuits are used when individual lawsuits over the same grievance would waste the court’s time to hear and would cost large amounts of money to pursue. Class action attorneys are paid by a common fund, by the main plaintiffs who filed the lawsuit, or by the defendants if the judge rules in favor of the plaintiffs.
How Are You Involved In A Class Action?
Basically, you have to opt-out of the class action to not be included. Otherwise, if you have the same grievances that are defined in the lawsuit, then you will be considered part of the class action lawsuit. You will receive compensation if the judge rules in favor of the class action lawsuit.
Unfortunately, if the ruling goes against you, you cannot then file an individual lawsuit against the defendants. You give up that right when involved in a class action.
Should You Be A Part Of A Class Action Lawsuit?
It depends on the particular circumstances. If you are going to be paying more to bring an individual lawsuit against the defendant than what you will receive in compensation from the judgment, then a class action lawsuit may be right for those circumstances. But if you have a very serious claim due to massive damages as you seek a large compensation from the defendant, you may want to opt-out of the class action and pursue an individual lawsuit.
Find Out More Information about the Class Action Lawsuit
You should always consult class action attorneys concerning a class action lawsuit and the actions you should take to be properly compensated if you have experienced any damages. You can also find out more information from the Class Action Notice of Proposed Settlement documentation, which will detail the class action and have the phone number of the Claims Administrator who you can contact for more information concerning the settlement.
Alisha Nickerson has written several publications relating to legal advice, for both businesses and consumer including informative editorial on insurance claims, personal injury law, employment law and medical malpractice lawsuits.
