Rats!

None of my numbers qualify.

Thank you for posting this. My cell number was on the list.

Rats, none of mine either

Mine too, I heard this yesterday on my Nextdoor app and registered for the suit.

My husband's line qualifies. Interesting.

A few years ago there was a class action suit for any Canadian that bought electronics. I just had to fill out a form online, no proof necessary, and they sent me a cheque.

Pkponder, I went ahead and posted on my nextdoor

I checked the other day and our landline was on the list. Neither cell phone was though. Submitted a claim for so we shall see if a check arrives in the mail in the future.

Cynic, it occurred to me that I might be submitting my information into a sellable data base. I figured since I already get several marketing calls a day as it is, what the heck, my info is already out there.

I get calls every day too and many telemarketers just use sequential dialing over VOIP.

Class action suits are like legalized extortion. The only winners are the lawyers who bring such suits for a contingent fee. I believe more of them are dismissed than not.

They're permitted because of the lobbying money spent by the ambulance chasing personal injury bar (who prefer the moniker "trial lawyers"). Class action suits could be done away with if the political will existed for a few simple tort and legal practice law changes and for governmental agencies - the federal Justice Dept and state and local attorneys general, to enforce existing laws.

Class actions serve a very important purpose. They protect the little guy. While the majority only put pennies into one's pocket there are others that help the the individual plaintiffs get proper redress. Individuals can't afford the costs of going after businesses and corporations. Class actions allow a group of people to file a single claim. Class action lawsuits go back to the 1800's.

A few decades ago I was part of a class action brought against a unethical lender. I was not the lead plaintiff. As the case proceeded the lender began to use highly intimidating tactics against the plaintiffs. Because of the way I am I became a pit bull on the plaintiff's side. I even got the list of other plaintiff's and called them encouraging them to not fall for the threats. They were some scary people. They sent scary people to knock on doors of the plaintiffs, many who were elderly or had language difficulties.

At any rate I ended up with over 20 grand in my pocket. No way would I get that as an individual plaintiff. An honest lawyer would never fight for that pittance.

Honest lawyers don't take individual cases for less than X amount of dollars. The ambulance chasers are the ones who say they will, end up costing the client a bunch of filing fees, pocket them and let the case ride out.

Side story: One day one of the thugs showed up at my door. I had a Black Lab mix at the time. Mellow dog, wouldn't hurt a flea, but a big boy. Thug approaches door. I open door and tell him to beat it. He tries to tell me he has a dog too, playing the friendly card. I smile and say, "Oh yeah, then you understand that this boy is a schutzhund." Thug says, "What is that?" I reply, "It means that if I give him the signal he goes for the crotch and doesn't let go." Only I used far more colorful words. LOL Thug immediately turns tail and drives off. A few minutes later one of the lawyers for our side lawyer calls. He is laughing his butt off. The defendant's lawyer called him and told them their tale of woe. Tells he definitely wants to keep me on the deposition list.

My number was on the list, so I registered. We'll see what happens

About a month ago I got a check for $11.30 as part of a settlement from an online company who misrepresented its malware product. Try as I might I have no knowledge of any transaction with said company. On the other hand, about 3 years ago I got a notice saying I would receive $600 in settlement for Kia misrepresenting its MPG. I'm still waiting. Every once in a while I check up on it and find it's still on appeal. I hope they hurry up---next birthday I'll be 85!

"Class actions allow a group of people to file a single claim. Class action lawsuits go back to the 1800's."

I hope some of the lawyers in the the audience, like Rita, will read this and step in to add their real knowledge to what I'm saying

Watchme, I believe class actions can start when a lawyer can find just one or a few individuals who believe they've been aggrieved. The suit gets filed, a request for class action status is made, and then the lawyers make a public effort to find more people to add to the class. Their interest in doing so is that the greater the size of the class, the greater the settlement and the greater the lawyers fees. You know doubt have seen newspaper and billboard ads for asbestos or mesothelioma suits, etc., looking for people to join the class. That's why, it's to boost lawyers fees.

"Honest lawyers don't take individual cases for less than X amount of dollars"

Class action lawyers go fishing, they start small and see what they can build up. As with other kinds of personal injury ambulance chasing, many cases get declined or dropped if the fee potential doesn't appear high enough or likely enough for a high payoff to warrant the time .

If these lawyers were interested in protecting the little guy and getting redress of wrongs, why don't they limit their fees to a declining reasonable percentage, approximating what the cost would be at normal hourly rates, as the amount of the settlement increases? None do.

Few other countries have class action suits as in the US. Somehow they all find it possible to regulate the conduct of individuals and businesses by law, without enriching a small group of lawyers filing speculative lawsuits. The US could do the same. It's easy to control, as I may have mentioned before - in most other countries, if a plaintiff sues and loses, or doesn't win, the plaintiff has to pay the costs of the defendant. In other words, if the suit doesn't have enough merit to prevail, the suing party is treated as having injured the defendant and has to pay an award. Good idea, don't you think?

I have long been an advocate of the loser paying court costs. I also advocate those who falsely accuse someone of a crime do the time.

But that is neither here nor there regarding class actions. Imagine you were bilked of thousands of dollars or a manufacturer's defect created unreasonable expenses that could were avoidable had the company owned up to their errors. Just how would you as an individual go about suing them? Facts are facts. Good lawyers don't take cases that are lose-lose propositions for both themselves and their clients. Have you ever tried to sue anyone or had to respond to a lawsuit? The court costs are horrendous. Every single file costs. Every single sheet of paper. Every single sheet the other side files has to be responded to. Never mind one side has the deep pockets and the little guy has to scrape up a hundred or more for each damn paper.