Class actions—civil cases in which parties initiate a lawsuit on behalf of plaintiffs not specifically named in the complaint—have elicited heated policy debates. The RAND Institute for Civil Justice conducts objective research on class action practices such as multidistrict litigation status, social policy class actions, and international class actions.
The RAND Institute for Civil Justice (ICJ) conducts research on all aspects of civil justice, from trends in litigation and jury verdicts to punitive damages, compensation systems, and alternative dispute resolution. Directly or indirectly, civil justice issues have an impact on us all.
News Release
The quest for greater transparency in the American civil justice system is the topic of a new book of essays illustrating how a balanced approach to increasing transparency can improve the civil justice system, raise public confidence and protect litigants' privacy.
Report
Some argue that the confidentiality of the civil justice system keeps it working efficiently and fairly; others argue that the public is being denied information about hazards that may cause harm. A balanced approach to increasing transparency can improve the system, raise public confidence, and protect litigants' privacy.
Research Brief
This research brief provides an overview of a collection of essays, a collaborative project by the UCLA-RAND Center for Law and Public Policy, examining the trade-offs between transparency and confidentiality in the civil justice system.
Journal Article
While a class action such as one brought under Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule 23 is certainly the most well-known mechanism for aggregating large numbers of similar claims, other approaches include mass joinder of parties, mass consolidation of separate cases, or multidistrict litigation transfer of federal cases from across the country into a single action for pretrial processing; corporate reorganizations under the U.S. Bankruptcy Code; large-scale inventories of clients controlled by a single attorney; government-initiated enforcement actions; and private attorneys general litigation brought on behalf of the general public.
Report
Class action lawsuits make headlines and arouse policy debates, but little is known about most of them. This book presents the results of surveys of insurers and state regulators to learn more about class litigation against insurance companies.
News Release
April 4, 2007 news release: RAND Study Finds Class Actions Against Insurers Rose Prior to Recent Reforms and Many Cases Occurred Outside Public View.
Research Brief
This research brief describes characteristics of more than 700 class action cases against large U.S. insurers -- trends in claims, their allegations, and their outcomes -- including the vast majority of cases that never become certified as a class.
News Release
RAND Study Finds More Than 730,000 People Have Filed Asbestos Injury Claims in U.S., Costing Defendants More Than $70 Billion
Report
Presents the most comprehensive description to date of the longest-running mass tort litigation in U.S. history.
Report
Examines the dimensions of current asbestos litigation and the potential future effects of the litigation on the U.S. economy
Journal Article
She extends her consideration of mass tort litigation to include what she terms "the new social policy torts": suits against tobacco companies, firearms manufacturers, and managed care organizations that are intended to change public policy.
Report
This briefing documents the first phase of a new study on asbestos litigation, now the longest-running mass tort litigation in U.S. history.
Journal Article
In this article, the authors explore alternative strategies for class-action reform aimed at improving the cost-benefit ratio of damage class actions.
Report
Class action lawsuits -- allowing one or a few plaintiffs to represent many who seek redress -- have long been controversial.
Report
Class action lawsuits-allowing one or a few plaintiffs to represent many who seek redress-have long been controversial.
Journal Article
Population turnover, cohort survival, intercohort transmission of effects are concepts widely applicable beyond the domains of demographic analysis.
Journal Article
Individuals within the aggregate : relationships, representation, and fees
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