Almost anyone can be part of a class when it comes to class action lawsuits. Perhaps you and thousands of others were overcharged for Kindle books from Amazon, or you've been driving a car with defective and dangerous airbags? You would almost have to live in a cave for you to be unaffected by them, but what is the purpose of a class action lawsuit and how should you handle those notifications? Read on to learn more.
Why have a class action suit?
Time and money are the two most obvious benefits to using a class action suit. If you and many other people have been harmed by the same thing, you can band together under one single lawsuit instead of having to fight it out in thousands of smaller lawsuits scattered around the country.
What you should know
When you are notified, either by mail or by email, that you may be eligible to be included in a class action, you should carefully read through all the literature and follow up by going to the website. Know what the basis of the claim is and make sure that you understand what your potential compensation might be. In most cases, these claims are required to include easily understood, everyday language. The most important point to keep in mind about class action suits is that if you agree to be included in one, you are giving up the right to file suit against the wrongdoer if you decide to do so later on, perhaps on your own. Whatever is decided by the class action suit, you must agree to abide by any judgments or settlements agreed upon.
More Benefits of These Big Suits
Numbers: Often, you will find it is the larger and powerful corporations on the receiving end of these suits. These corporations employ legal teams that can, if circumstances permit, run roughshod right over single claimants in suits against them. When you agree to be part of the class, the legal fight is taken out of your hands and given over to another, equally powerful legal team who will fight for your rights to a safe product, or whatever the basis of the claim.
Change: These suits often gain a good amount of publicity, and they should. Not only will the publicity make other consumers more aware of a potential problem, but the embarrassment to the company will hopefully force the immediate change. That change might be a correction, pulling something off the shelves, or a recall and a fix.
If you have been notified about a class action suit, discuss the case with a personal injury attorney, like those at Ringsmuth Wuori, before you agree to be part of the class.
