I am not proud nor ashamed of the check. I did NOT start the suit nor was I an active party to it. I received a post card more than a year ago telling me that I was a "member" of the class (by virtue of purchasing one or more covered mowers during a certain period of time). I could opt out and file my own suit or accept some money from the manufacturers WHO HAD ALREADY THROWN IN THE TOWEL. If I did not take my share of money it would be divided among the other "members." I did not ask the manufacturers to put the money on the table but I would be stupid not to pick it up. And a lot of other folks must feel the same way. The "up to" estimate of the settlement for two riding mowers and one push mower was $185. That tells me a lot more folks than expected decided to take their money.

I suppose I couldn't in good conscience do that ;) I can my own, the only time I've purchased commercial tuna in decades is for the high schools food drive.

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.

I was a member of a class action also. Against a well known bank/lender. While it's true that many are pretty lame in the sense of the consumer getting much of an award I was one of the more injured parties to the suit although I was not the primary plaintiff. Also the lawyers took a liking to my pit bull attitude and refusal to be intimidated by the goons from the other side. Some of the crap the other side pulled could have come straight out of a movie. Ended with quite a bit more than pocket change. At least four years worth of mortgage payments. Sure most class actions result in a coupon or a few bucks but like Lars said they are the little guys key to help make change in laws and see that the big guys don't get away with their shenanigans.