“When used correctly, class actions allow courts to resolve in one action many smaller, similar claims that might otherwise remain unheard because the cost of any particular suit would exceed the possible benefit to the claimant.” (KRC: Hantler, “Seven Myths…”, p. 12)

“When used incorrectly, class actions can provide incentives that pervert the civil justice system:  injuries need only be perceived, not real; attorneys hire plaintiffs, they are not hired by plaintiffs; settlements are driven by cost, not justice; and the plaintiffs’ attorneys receive money, plaintiffs may not.”  (KRC: Hantler, “Coupon Settlements…”, p. 1343)

“Class actions also allow defendants to focus their energies on resolving all claims in one lawsuit, and prevent courts from being flooded with duplicative claims.” (KRC: Hantler, “Seven Myths…”, p. 12)

“Class action lawsuits were originally intended to encourage more efficient utilization of the legal system by joining together similarly aggrieved parties into a common legal claim.  But with the relatively lax certification standards extant in many states, class actions have become a tool for litigating cases that might otherwise lack merit.”  (www.namic.org, State and Legislative Resources, “Tort Reform: An Overview of State Legislative Efforts to Improve the Legal System”; Class Actions; as accessed on September 27, 2002)

“Class actions were conceived as an expeditious way for people with similar grievances to join in a common suit and get compensated for injuries.  But class actions have evolved into a favored means for Trial Lawyers, Inc. to launch predatory assaults on businesses and large institutions, often in the name of clients who don’t even know they are being represented.”  (KRC: Manhattan Institute, Trial Lawyers, Inc., p. 8)