What is the difference between a class action and a mass tort?
The difference between a class action and a mass tort is that a class action refers to a single lawsuit that is filed on behalf of many people who have been similarly affected by the same issue. It is usually filed against a single defendant in the form of a collective action. A mass tort, on the other hand, is an action involving multiple plaintiffs and multiple defendants in which each plaintiff’s claim is handled individually. Each plaintiff may present their own unique facts and circumstances, and each defendant may then be liable for a different percentage of the damages. In the state of Kansas, a class action lawsuit can be filed if a civil action involves the same or similar issues that affect many people in a single geographic area, such as a product defect or an issue of consumer fraud. Individual plaintiffs are grouped together as a single plaintiff, meaning they are represented as one legal entity. The court decides whether the action should proceed as a class action or not. Mass torts, on the other hand, involve more than one plaintiff from various geographical locations and can include a greater variety of issues. A mass tort case will often have a greater variety of factual and legal questions to explore. Mass torts are typically filed in state or federal court and handled on an individual basis. Overall, the main difference between class action and mass tort is that class action is a collective action brought by a group of individuals, while a mass tort is a group of individual cases filed by a single plaintiff. In the case of both types of lawsuits, the goal is the same - to hold the defendant accountable for their actions and to provide compensation for any harm done.
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