How Does a Class Action Start and Proceed?
A class action begins in the same way as any other lawsuit, by one or more persons (known as the “plaintiffs”) filing a complaint in court. However, in a class action, the plaintiffs are described in the complaint as “suing on behalf of all others similarly situated.” Just saying that a case is a class action doesn’t make it so, however. At some point the court must certify the case as a class action in order for the plaintiffs to be able to obtain relief on behalf of a class. Certain legal criteria must be met before a court can certify the case as a class action, such as whether there is a sufficient number of class members, whether there are common issues, and so forth. If the court agrees that the case should have class action status, then all potential members of the class are notified.
Related Questions
- With the GAO report, congressional hearings, the DOL 408 project and class action suits on revenue sharing with mutual funds, what advantage do ETFs have?
- Is formal action of the board of education required for student-funded programs such as yearbooks, class rings and gifts?
- What is a class action settlement?
