Say the defendant has to pay 1000's of people. I know the attorney gets a huge chunk. What about the initial person who went to the attorney to file the suit?
2007-10-22 08:44:49 · 4 answers · asked by Just Askin' 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
Definitely. He/she is referred to as the "class representative" and receives much more than the members of the class. The policy behind it is that the person came forward and should be rewarded for starting the procedure, also because he is foregoing his right to have an individual hearing/case on his individual claims.
Absolutely the class representative gets more money. Attorneys tend to get 30-40% depending on how the case gets resolved, the class rep. may get 1%-5%, and the rest is disbursed to the class members.
2007-10-22 10:21:45 · answer #1 · answered by fredo 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Generally no -- the nature of a class action is that everyone in the class is "similarly situated" -- meaning they have suffered the same type of harm.
If the harm is (for example) they purchased a defective product -- then they all get back what they paid -- if the harm is that the product caused physical injuries -- then each gets back the value of those injuries (proved up separately).
The plaintiff's lawyer usually takes a percentage -- that's standard in such cases -- but remember, if the plaintiffs lose, the lawyer gets nothing AND is out all the costs of the lawsuit.
2007-10-22 10:24:49 · answer #2 · answered by coragryph 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Ni, not unless it is specifically stated in the lawsuit. Usually with class action status everyone gets an equal payout, regardless of who filed the suit initially
2007-10-22 08:59:12 · answer #3 · answered by thequeenreigns 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes. The named plaintiff in a class action usually gets some extra money (after court approval) for his troubles (e.g., having his deposition taken, responding to interrogatories, etc.). The number can be somewhere in between five and six figrues
2007-10-22 09:51:29 · answer #4 · answered by Steve B 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋