The Facts About Class Action Lawsuits

Television and radio ads for class action lawsuits are quite prominent in modern society because of their vast reach and marked impact. Class action claims have led to numerous case law examples, new laws, and changes in court procedures. Famous class actions have even led to notable movies such as Erin Brockovich. Understand a little more about the facts concerning a class action lawsuit before deciding if you want to be involved with one.

Class Action Legal Claims Take Time to Resolve

Anytime you have a class action lawsuit, there is going to be a lot of paperwork involved. Just the discovery and production request portion of the suit can by itself can take many months to be resolved. There may be depositions, conference status hearings, motions, and even oral arguments before a trial date is set. Add all this up and you have a legal action that could be years away from resolution. The good news is that not all class action claims will be in limbo for years, as sometimes defendants would much rather settle out of court.

Parties to Class Action Lawsuits Are Usually Interested in Settling

Within every mass tort and class action there will almost definitely be settlement negotiations. The fact of the matter is that class action lawsuits are exceedingly difficult to litigate and defend against. It would be very difficult for a defendant to represent themselves pro se in a class action case. In the majority of class action cases, entire teams of lawyers work together on each side to file pleadings, answers, and make other formal requests of the court. As such, settlement negotiations generally take place early on in the process to see if reaching an out of court settlement is amenable.

Class Action Claims Have to be Approved by the Court Before They Can Proceed

Before a class action case can even be filed, certain merits have to be fulfilled, as required under federal rules. In short, if you and a couple of friends got into a car accident, you probably would not be successful in your class action lawsuit against the driver. While a single person can file a claim on behalf of a group, there are a litany of questions that must first be answered in the affirmative. When a group of litigants band together, class action status can only be reached if there are simply too many people to be named individually.

If you are involved in a class action claim or are looking to start a class action lawsuit against an opposing party, study up on the law. First and foremost, you should retain the services of an attorney who has successfully lead class action lawsuits in the past. This is a very complex area of the law that is not suited for novices, as the procedures and rules for federal court are far more strenuous than what you would see at a lower level court. Be prepared to follow the case and its numerous hearing dates for a long time to see the final outcome.