Frequently Asked Questions - Class Actions

There are several options available to members of a class action lawsuit. The most important position is that of class representative (see below). It is very important to have people willing to serve as class representatives and many actions fail or are never brought because no one steps forward to champion the rights of the class.

While serving as a class representative is a rewarding and interesting experience, there is no requirement that a member of the class participate as a representative and, indeed, it would defeat the purpose of the class action mechanism to allow this. Those members of the class who do not serve as class representatives are known as "absent class members." The interests of the absent class members are looked after by the class representative and class counsel. In addition, the court itself plays a role in ensuring that absent members of the class are treated fairly because every class action settlement must be approved by a judge.

A class action is a lawsuit brought on behalf of a large group of people who have similar legal claims against the same defendant or defendants. In a class action, an individual or entity stands before the court to represent the entire group of people with such similar claims. This person is referred to as the "class representative." This procedure allows the Court to resolve hundreds or thousands of claims simultaneously and provides a mechanism for litigating relatively small claims that, standing alone, would not be economically feasible to litigate individually.

Common examples of class actions are securities investment scams where a company makes uniform and widely broadcast statements about itself which later turn out to be false or misleading. In such a case, everyone who bought the company's securities between the time such statements were made and the truth is discovered would have similar claims against the company for artificially inflating the value of the securities they purchased. Other examples include uniformly defective products and deceptive marketing or sales practices.

Although many cases are filed as class actions, they may not proceed as such until a judge approves the case for class action status. When a class is certified, the court will order that "the best notice practicable" be given to members of the class who can be identified. In some class actions, members of the class are given the right to opt out of the action and pursue their own claims if they wish.