Although most people have heard of class action lawsuits, not many have a good understanding of them. Broadly speaking, class action lawsuits are legal actions brought on behalf of groups of people. Class action lawsuits differ from traditional lawsuits, which are typically filed by single individuals. However, there is much more to class action lawsuits than the number of parties involved. Below is an overview of class action lawsuits. For additional information, please contact a Florida class action attorney.
Class Action Lawsuit Requirements
A class action lawsuit is a type of legal action that is filed on behalf of a class of people who all have similar claims against a defendant or group of defendants. Class action lawsuits are filed in court by class representatives or lead plaintiffs. After a class representative or lead plaintiff files a class action lawsuit, the court determines whether it will permit the matter to move ahead as a class action. There are several factors that a case must meet in order for it to move forward as a class action. These factors are:
- Numerosity, which means that there must be a large enough number of individual claims to make class certification the most effective manner to proceed;
- Commonality, which means that the claims must be similar;
- Typicality, which means that the class representatives’ claims must be typical of all other class members’ claims; and
- Adequacy, which means that class representatives must be willing and able to represent the class in an effective manner.
Settlement and Judgment
Each class member in a class action lawsuit is bound by the terms of the class action settlement or judgment. If the lawsuit seeks monetary damages, all class members receive notice of the proceedings, a description of the lawsuit, and information on how to opt out of the lawsuit. Class members who opt out are ineligible to obtain financial recovery from the lawsuit.
Relief
Most class action lawsuits seek to obtain financial relief for every class member. A class action lawsuit may also ask the court to define the obligations and rights of the class versus the defendant. This is called a declaratory judgment class action. In addition, class action lawsuits sometimes ask the court for injunctive relief. If a request for injunctive relief is successful, the court can order the defendant in the case to take certain actions or cease certain conduct.
Contact a Florida Class Action Attorney
If you are interested in pursuing a class action lawsuit in Florida, you need an experienced Florida class action attorney on your side. Class action lawyer Seth Lehrman and his class action team have extensive investigative, litigation, and trial experience. Mr. Lehrman’s firm has the knowledge, experience, and resources required to effectively represent you in your class action lawsuit. For class action legal assistance, please contact our law firm today for a consultation.