Mass torts involve a large group of plaintiffs suing a small number of defendants for damages. They occur due to disasters, product liability cases, and toxic torts. Coordinated legal teams work with plaintiffs to gather evidence and take the case to trial or settlement. Notices are issued to potential plaintiffs to join the case. Mass torts have been used to recover damages in various cases.
A mass tort is a civil suit with a large group of plaintiffs suing a small number of defendants for damages. Mass tort laws vary, and many regions have programs in place to administer and manage mass torts. Cases must be designated as such to be eligible for administration under these programs. In a mass tort there may be hundreds or thousands of plaintiffs with cases of a similar nature.
Some common reasons for mass torts to occur include disasters involving large numbers of people, product liability cases, and so-called toxic torts that involve exposure to toxins. In a mass wrong, the plaintiffs’ cases are all similar, even if they’re not exactly the same. For example, if a company is sued for making a product that puts people at risk of having fingers amputated, the plaintiffs could include people who have lost something from one finger to all of the fingers on one hand. However, a person injured by a separate product from the same manufacturer or under different circumstances could not join the mass tort.
Prosecuting mass torts requires a highly coordinated legal team. Attorneys work with plaintiffs to gather supporting documentation, go through the discovery process to uncover documents and evidence from defendants, and take the case to trial or work out a settlement. At the conclusion of the case, if the jury recognizes the defendant’s liability, the plaintiffs are compensated.
When lawyers suspect they have a mass tort on their hands, one of the first steps they take is to look for other clients. For example, if a law firm has 200 people who have experienced dangerous side effects from a drug, it might issue notices asking people who have taken that drug and had bad experiences to contact the firm. As the case progresses, notices can be sent to people who may be eligible for damages alerting them that mass tort is occurring, and they can join the case to receive damages.
Some mass torts attract considerable attention because they involve popular or controversial products. In particular, a number of pharmaceutical companies have been sued by large groups of plaintiffs who have had problems with their drugs. Mass torts have been used to force companies to clean up environmental pollution, to recover damages for family members of people who die in disasters, and to recover damages in a variety of other types of cases.
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