What’s the Difference Between a
Class Action and a Mass Tort Lawsuit?
If I Live in El Segundo, Why Am I Not Automatically Part of the Hyperion Lawsuit?
When hearing about the January 11, 2022 deadline to bring a claim against LA Sanitation for the Hyperion sewage spill, many El Segundo residents ask why they aren’t automatically party to the lawsuit against LA Sanitation.
PARRIS Law Firm and Bloom Injury Law’s case against Hyperion is called a mass tort lawsuit—not a class action. Several key differences between these types of cases affect your rights, recovery amount, and say in the legal process.
Most importantly a mass tort case requires that you sign up for the lawsuit within a certain time frame or miss out on the chance to recover.
There is only a six-month window—July 11, 2021 to January 11, 2022—to file a claim against LA Sanitation to obtain a full recovery for their negligence. We want to make sure you are fully informed of your legal options before the January deadline arrives.
Why We Aren’t Filing a Class Action Lawsuit Against Hyperion
Some El Segundo residents believe the filing of a class action means they don’t have to take any action.
There is no guarantee the Court will allow any case to proceed as a class action – in fact, one judge just dismissed all class action claims against the City of Los Angeles Department of Water & Power when it allowed natural gas to leak into the community of Sun Valley.
In addition, a class action lawsuit only works if everyone in the “class” suffered the same damages from the same cause. In this case, each person in El Segundo would have to have suffered the exact same economic injury in the aftermath of the sewage spill. We know that this was not the case—some people only had to purchase air conditioning units, while others were forced to relocate.
Plus, a class action does not allow class members to recover for physical injuries. If you were physically or emotionally injured in any way by the sewage spill, then you must file your own claim to fully recover the damages you suffered.
Filing a claim against LA Sanitation now is the best way to protect your rights.
The Benefits of a Mass Tort Lawsuit
PARRIS Law Firm and Bloom Injury Law have chosen to pursue a mass tort lawsuit, not a class action, against LA Sanitation. A mass tort lawsuit protects you, the individual, against Hyperion and is designed to be the best way to recover for all claims against LA Sanitation.
A mass tort action allows multiple plaintiffs to file individual personal injury claims against a negligent entity in a single lawsuit. The court generally prefers in mass lawsuits to have a single complaint to minimize the expenses and work associated with thousands of individual lawsuits. Because your claim is personal, you maintain a degree of control and say in the legal process. Your lawyers will take into account your individual damages; we do not assume that your damage from exposure to the noxious odors was the same as your neighbor’s damages.
Perhaps most importantly, a mass tort action allows you to recover for your physical and emotional damages, including any medical symptoms or your loss of the enjoyment of your home. In cases like these, compensation is typically allocated to each individual in accordance with what our experts and our client prove as damages — it is not evenly split between all the plaintiffs, as often happens in a class action.
In the wake of the Hyperion sewage spill, you may be entitled to damages for any of the following:
- Relocation expenses
- Air conditioning units and increased electrical costs
- Air purification systems and increased electrical costs
- Medical expenses (past and future)
- Loss of the enjoyment of your home
- Income losses
- Emotional injuries (anxiety or depression) and
- Physical injuries (skin rashes, eye/nose irritation, nausea, and headaches).
If you have smelled noxious odors and experienced any of the above in the months following the Hyperion sewage spill, you may be eligible to join the lawsuit.
Not only is signing up completely free, but it is also the best way to ensure your rights are protected.
Help us hold LA Sanitation accountable. Sign up for the Hyperion lawsuit before it’s too late.