How to Join a Class Action Lawsuit (And What to Expect)
If you’ve ever gotten one of those official-looking notices in the mail or seen a news story about a class action lawsuit involving some product you bought, service you paid for, or company you trusted, you’ve probably wondered whether you should jump in and join the lawsuit. Maybe you’re thinking “Hey, I used that product too” or “That company screwed me over the same way.”
Class action lawsuits are honestly pretty powerful tools that let tons of people with similar complaints band together to take on big corporations or institutions that would be way too expensive or risky to fight individually. It’s like the legal version of strength in numbers.
While joining one of these lawsuits can sometimes be as simple as filling out a claim form and mailing it in, the whole process definitely isn’t quick. You should know upfront that the timeline for class action lawsuits generally take several years from start to finish because of all the investigations, court approvals, and back-and-forth negotiations that have to happen.
Here’s how to actually join a class action lawsuit and what you can realistically expect throughout the whole process.
Recognizing What a Class Action Lawsuit Is
A class action lawsuit is simply a group lawsuit where multiple individuals who have the same legal complaints against the same party join together to make one lawsuit instead of dozens or hundreds of individual lawsuits. It’s simply much more efficient and cost-effective than suing individually.
These case in particular come up frequently when there are defective products that harmed or disappointed numerous individuals, fraud schemes that scammed multiple individuals, employment issues like wage theft affecting numerous employees, and data breaches exposing everyone to identity theft.
The benefits of a class action lawsuit is that you can share the cost of legal expenses with everyone else in the class action, and collectively you have much more power than you do alone. Further, there are many situations where an individual lawsuit may not be plausible when your damages are individually relatively low but it becomes a reasonable claim when collectively brought together.
The primary difference from an individual lawsuit, is that you have no control over the strategic process of the legal action or the negotiation of the settlement. The lawyers controlling the class action determine these aspects and anyone they reach in negotiation applies to the entire class of individuals.
Determine Whether You Are Eligible
The first thing you need to do is determine whether you are actually eligible to participate in the class action. Sometimes, if the lawyers already have your contact information due to company records, you will receive notices in the mail or by email about your lawsuit. Other times, you may learn about the lawsuit from media stories or through the official websites.
Carefully review the eligibility criteria; they can sometimes be very specific. There may have been products purchased during specific dates, or geographic regions where you lived, and/or specific types of harm experienced. The class definition explains who can participate and who cannot.
If you’re unsure about whether you are eligible or not, contact the law firms involved in the case. Most class action lawyers are very happy to help you determine if you’re eligible because the more people in the class, the better their case becomes.
But, don’t take a long time looking into this. There can be deadlines for joining and if you miss those deadlines, you may miss your chance to participate altogether.
What Happens When the Litigation Gets Underway
When the litigation gets underway, there will normally be a lengthy discovery and investigation process so that lawyers can gather evidence, take witness statements and build their case. This can go on for months or even longer (sometimes even years depending on the complexity of the issues) before class counsel will be ready to approach any settlement.
Most class actions settle rather than going to trial because it is very expensive for the parties to go through a trial, and it is also risky. Negotiating settlement terms can take a long time. Lawyers may spend a long time negotiating settlement terms that are realistically workable for everyone involved.
Even when the lawyers have reached a settlement with the defendants, the settlement will not be finalized until it is approved by a judge. Courts require settlements to be fair and reasonable for all class members, and this involves completing additional hearings and paperwork.
This is also why cases take so long to resolve. From the investigation process, to the negotiation process, and then the court approval process, it is common for class actions to take 3, 4, or even longer than that from start to finish.
Understand What You are Getting Into
Participating in a class action lawsuit can certainly be an effective way to assert your rights, particularly when dealing with large corporations or improper conduct that resulted in widespread harm that affected many individuals. While the process of participating in a class action lawsuit is typically fairly simple, it is important to keep your expectations in check regarding timelines and potential settlement amounts.
If you think you may be eligible for a class action lawsuit, read any notices you receive carefully, and ensure you act within any deadlines, and do not hesitate to reach out to a lawyer if you have questions about your situation.
Make note that class actions often take a long time to resolve, but they often provide a means to accountability and compensation that will just not make sense through individual lawsuits, and sometimes something is better than nothing, especially when alone against large corporations the prospect of taking on this expense just isn’t practical or feasible.
