Litigating and Arbitrating Construction Disputes Involving Mass Torts
Mass torts are not the same as class actions, even if they sound similar. In a class action, one plaintiff or a few plaintiffs sue one or several defendants while representing an entire class of plaintiffs in similar situations. The details of each plaintiff’s case do not necessarily receive individual attention.
In a mass tort, plaintiffs combine resources and many legal cases into a single trial, but each plaintiff is treated as an individual with an individual lawsuit. The chief advantage for plaintiffs arises from resource savings associated with sharing the cost of investigation and research so that more time and energy can be spent to build the strongest legal case for each plaintiff.
At Shipley Law Group, our vast experience representing construction industry players in every type of litigation means that we can effectively and efficiently defend or prosecute mass tort cases for any construction-related business.
Construction businesses as defendants in mass torts cases
Because the work of the construction industry touches so many people in so many unique and individualized ways, architects, contractors, and owners are more likely to be defendants in mass tort actions than in class actions. Examples of potential mass torts against the construction industry include:
- Complaints resulting from building defects that have allegedly caused separate and unique harms to the building owners, building tenants, and surrounding community
- Complaints arising from the alleged effects of a construction project on the environment, such as triggering dangerous downstream pollution or releasing dangerous carcinogens
- Complaints arising from the alleged use of defective or otherwise inadequate building materials, especially where plaintiffs believe that architects, engineers, or builders had reason to know of the materials’ defects or inadequacies
In all of these cases, a Chicago construction lawyer from Shipley Law Group will bring decades of experience representing construction industry players to bear in your defense, preventing expensive and potentially devastating liability settlements or verdicts.
Construction businesses as plaintiffs in mass torts cases
The construction industry also frequently has cause to sue as plaintiffs in mass tort cases. Cases like this can arise when an entire class of building materials—for example, the recent litigation surrounding sulfur-leaking Chinese drywall—makes otherwise unproblematic building projects dangerous or unusable, subjecting builders, contractors, and owners to expensive repairs and potential liability. In other cases, equipment and supply manufacturers may continue to sell dangerous equipment and materials even after they know of the danger.
Defending or prosecuting construction industry mass torts
Each Chicago construction attorney at Shipley Law Group brings specialized knowledge of construction industry legal issues, standards, and practices to every case that comes our way. If your construction business needs to defend itself in a mass tort, or is considering becoming a plaintiff in a mass tort, Shipley Law Group is the right choice for any Illinois business.