Covid Class Actions Surge – 90% Receive No Benefit
As trial lawyers begin to capitalize on the coronavirus pandemic by filing class action lawsuits alleging consumer fraud, a new report reveals that more than 90% of class members in consumer fraud cases receive no benefit whatsoever from this type of litigation.
As trial lawyers begin to capitalize on the coronavirus pandemic by filing class action lawsuits alleging consumer fraud, a new report reveals that more than 90% of class members in consumer fraud cases receive no benefit whatsoever from this type of litigation.
The report, issued by the Jones Day law firm, found that the median participation rate of class members was less than 3.5%.
The report also analyzed various frivolous class action lawsuits often highlighted in the Judicial Hellholes report. For example, their research found that a settlement regarding the alleged misrepresentation of battery life resulted in a participation rate of less than 1% of class members.
ATRA has long believed that class action settlements provide little or no benefit to class members, but instead serve to enrich the trial lawyers who bring the suits. While certain class actions have their place in the legal system, overall, the system should be reformed to address abuse by plaintiffs’ lawyers particularly when they use uninjured consumers as a tool to drive class actions, settlements and large fee awards.
Read ATRA President Tiger Joyce’s op-ed, “ClassAction Conundrum.”
Share this online:
Latest News
View all news
Third Circuit Ruling Blocks Bankruptcy Proceedings for LTL Management
The American Tort Reform Association (ATRA) is disappointed to learn that the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit ruled against LTL Management, LLC in a case regarding the […]
Trial lawyers target agriculture products in ‘Judicial Hellholes’
This op-ed was originally published by Agri-Pulse. Mass tort litigation has become a multi-billion-dollar industry for trial lawyers over the past several decades as they’ve targeted everything from tobacco and […]
Gov. DeSantis Signs Key Legal Reform Bill In Florida
SB 2-A to improve FL property insurance; addresses assignment of benefits, one way attorney fee shifting, third-party bad faith
ATRA Brief Calls on SCOTUS to Review Near Limitless Per Violation Civil Penalties
Arbitrary, excessive punishments result from lack of clarity under some laws
Frivolous ‘No-Injury’ Lawsuits Thrive in California
State ranked No. 3 among worst ‘Judicial Hellholes’ in nation with residents paying $1,900 per year in ‘tort tax’
Endless Coastal Litigation Creates Climate of Lawsuit Abuse in ‘Judicial Hellhole’ Louisiana
Residents pay ‘tort tax’ of more than $1,010 amid all-time high inflation