When a company’s conduct injures hundreds or thousands of people in the same way, two procedural tools exist to aggregate those claims: the class action and the mass tort. They look similar from the outside — both involve large groups of injured plaintiffs and a common defendant — but they work very differently, and the choice matters to you as an individual plaintiff.

The Class Action: Strength in Numbers, Limits on Individual Recovery

In a certified class action, one or more named plaintiffs represent a class of similarly situated people. A single judgment or settlement resolves the claims of every class member — including people who never contacted an attorney and may not even know the lawsuit exists.

What makes class actions powerful: The combined economic weight of thousands of small claims forces defendants to the settlement table and justifies litigation that would be economically impossible for any one plaintiff to bring alone.

What limits them: Class members generally share a settlement pool. If a case settles for $50 million across 100,000 class members, the individual recovery is often modest — sometimes a few hundred dollars. Named plaintiffs typically receive a larger “incentive award” for their time, but no guarantee.

Under Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (and California’s equivalent under Code of Civil Procedure § 382), a case must meet strict requirements to be certified as a class — including that common questions of law or fact predominate over individual ones.

The Mass Tort: Individual Claims, Coordinated Litigation

Mass torts — like multi-district litigation (MDL) at the federal level or coordinated proceedings in California state court — keep individual plaintiffs’ claims separate. Your case remains your case. You can negotiate your own settlement, your damages are calculated individually, and your outcome is not averaged with anyone else’s.

This matters most when:

  • Your injuries are significantly more severe than the average plaintiff in the group
  • Your individual facts are favorable (strong documentation, clear causation)
  • The case involves personal injury with substantial pain and suffering damages

The tradeoff is coordination: mass tort plaintiffs must follow the schedule and structure of the coordinated proceeding, which can take years. Individual outcomes vary significantly depending on your specific facts and the quality of your representation.

Questions to Ask Before You Join Any Case

If you’re being asked to join a class action:

  • What is the proposed settlement amount, and how many class members will share it?
  • What are you giving up by being a class member? (You typically release all related claims.)
  • Do you have individual claims that might be worth more than your class share?
  • Can you opt out and pursue an individual lawsuit?

If you’re being approached about a mass tort:

  • Is this a contingency case, and what is the attorney’s fee percentage?
  • What are the current bellwether results in this litigation?
  • How long has the litigation been pending and what is the realistic timeline?
  • Do you have documentation that supports your individual claim?

Red Flags in Mass Litigation Advertising

Aggressive advertising in both class action and mass tort cases has generated significant confusion for plaintiffs. Be cautious of:

  • Any firm that guarantees a recovery amount before your facts are evaluated
  • High-pressure tactics to sign retainer agreements immediately
  • Firms that appear to be aggregating claims for referral rather than handling them directly
  • Vague descriptions of what the case is actually about

You have the right to ask any attorney who contacts you: who will actually handle my case, what firm will try it if it goes to trial, and what is the fee arrangement?

Related practice area: Class Action & Mass Tort Litigation

This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. If you have been injured by a product, corporate conduct, or environmental contamination, contact an attorney to evaluate your individual situation.

Trujillo & Winnick LLP handles class actions and mass tort litigation throughout California. Contact us at (310) 210-9302 or office@tru-win.com.