Civil procedure
Class Action
A class action is a lawsuit where a few named plaintiffs sue on behalf of a much larger group with the same injury.
It exists because some wrongs are too small to sue over individually and too widespread to ignore. A twelve dollar overcharge to four million customers is not worth one lawsuit but is worth one class action, and the judgment binds everyone in the class who does not opt out.
The case has two lives. Before certification it is an ordinary lawsuit brought by a handful of people; after certification it represents the whole class, with court-supervised notice, a court-appointed class counsel, and judicial approval required for any settlement.
Watch the caption for the tell. Words such as individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated mean the pleading is asking for class treatment, even though nothing is certified yet and may never be.
How it appears on a docket
CLASS ACTION COMPLAINT filed by Maria Rodriguez individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated.
Governing rule
Fed. R. Civ. P. 23
Related terms
- Class Certification — Class certification is the court's decision about whether a case may proceed on behalf of an entire class rather than only the named plaintiffs.
- Settlement Agreement — A settlement agreement is the contract in which the parties resolve a lawsuit themselves, usually with a payment and a release of claims.
More on civil procedure
See this term in a real case
Search federal court records and read the filings where class action actually shows up. New to federal dockets? Start with how to find a federal case.