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A New Yorker’s guide to class-action lawsuits
By
Samantha Max
Published Aug 31, 2024
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By
Samantha Max
Published Aug 31, 2024
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If you’ve snacked on protein bars that listed misleading nutrition information on the wrapper, applied for a job at a firm with discriminatory hiring practices, taken medication with serious and unexpected side effects, or paid an exorbitant fee when selling your condo, you might be eligible for a payday, even if you didn’t know you were harmed.
That’s because of a special type of lawsuit called a class action. Maybe you’ve seen ads for them on the subway, in TV commercials or received a notification in the mail about a claim. But if you’re not sure how they work — or how they could help you — Gothamist has this explainer.
What is a class-action lawsuit?
A class action is a kind of lawsuit that can be filed when many people — in legalese, a class — have been harmed in a similar way. Thousands of retired football players brought a class action against the NFL in 2012, arguing the league had profited off of work conditions that caused them brain damage. In the late 1990s, Holocaust survivors and their heirs filed one against German companies they said had benefited from slave labor in concentration camps. They’ve also been brought against companies accused of compromising customer data, manufacturing cars with faulty brakes, selling products that cause cancer and violating workers’ rights. Class members in the biggest cases – maybe a corporate shareholders’ claim or a product liability matter – have shared billion-dollar payouts, though individual sums may total no more than a few dollars.
NYU law professor Arthur Miller said class actions gained popularity in the 1960s, as civil rights movements challenged discrimination against people of color, women and people with disabilities. But in the decades since, he said, they’ve become a “tremendous weapon” for groups of people who have been harmed to band together and get justice.
“In modern life, things don’t happen one by one. It’s not two people negotiating over an ox cart anymore,” Miller said. “It’s thousands of people.”
I think I’ve been wronged. Should I file a class-action lawsuit? Or just go it on my own?
Several attorneys who specialize in class action lawsuits told Gothamist these types of cases aren’t the best option if you’ve been harmed so seriously that you could win a substantial amount of money on your own. For instance, more than 700 former Rikers detainees who recently sued New York City because they say they were sexually abused by staff each filed their own lawsuits. Some past sexual assault lawsuits brought by former Rikers detainees have settled for more than $1 million.
But experts said class actions work well when many people have been harmed in a very similar way. Attorney Remy Green said there’s no “magic number,” but federal judges are often more easily persuaded when 40 people or more have been harmed. Judges also have to consider other criteria when deciding whether a case should be brought as a class action, like whether the people who have been harmed are connected in some way.
If I’m eligible for money as part of a class-action lawsuit someone else filed, how will I know? And how can I get paid?
Federal rules say that everyone who could be eligible should be notified “through reasonable effort.” Miller said sometimes it’s easy for attorneys to figure out who should get a payment, because everyone is listed in a public record, like a list of stockholders. But in other cases, like consumer lawsuits where there’s no list of everyone who bought a certain product, the best way to find people is through advertisements, he said.
“It’s important that people pay attention to those notices,” Miller said.
I saw an ad telling me to contact a lawyer so I can get paid. How do I know it’s not a scam?
Ads for class actions are ubiquitous, so it can be tough to tell what’s legit. Do your research before you share any personal or financial information with anyone — especially if their promises seem too good to be true. Find out what law firm brought the lawsuit and contact them through information listed directly on their official website.
Are class actions just a way to get money? Or can they have any other impact?
While some class-action lawsuits result in payouts, others lead to changes meant to prevent similar harms in the future. One of the most prominent New York City examples is the class-action lawsuit that forced the NYPD to overhaul its stop-and-frisk procedures after a group of Black and Latino New Yorkers accused the department of conducting unconstitutional, racially discriminatory stops. Another class action created the city’s right to shelter, which created protections for homeless New Yorkers.
Myriam Gilles, a professor at Cardozo School of Law who specializes in class-action law, said these types of cases can deter bad behavior. She said companies might feel more pressure to check the products on their assembly lines if they’re worried about a class-action lawsuit that could cost them a huge amount of money.
“A claim by one individual plaintiff, they could litigate that all day and at the end of it, even if they lose that case, they're not going to be on the hook for very much money,” Gilles said. “But a class action gets the company's attention.”
Tagged
class action lawsuit
new york
public safety
economy
Samantha Max
Samantha reports on whether New Yorkers feel safe and whether the institutions that are supposed to protect them are working. Before coming to WNYC/Gothamist, she spent three years covering the criminal justice system in Tennessee for Nashville Public Radio. Her reporting on Nashville's police department received multiple awards, including the Daniel Schorr Journalism Prize. Samantha was also part of the inaugural class of Report for America, a service journalism program that sends up-and-coming reporters to local newsrooms across the country. She is a Northwestern University grad, a Baltimore native and fluent in Spanish. Got a tip? Email [email protected] or Signal: samanthamaxwnyc.93.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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