A survey released recently reveals that class action spending in the United States is growing at more than twice the rate of other litigation categories, and has reached an all-time high of $2.9 billion in 2020.
According to the Carlton Fields’ annual 2021 Class Action Survey, the number of class actions faced by companies have significantly increased, as have their complexity and stakes.
Key findings for 2020 not surprisingly include that Covid-related class actions have affected at least 25% of the companies surveyed, focusing principally on business interruption insurance, higher education tuition fees, and travel and entertainment refunds. By April 2021 more than 1,600 such class actions had been filed.
Labor and employment class cases remained the number one category in 2020, followed closely by consumer fraud. Data breach and cybersecurity class cases are expected to increase dramatically in 2021, given recent or expected enactment of state data privacy statutes.
According to the survey, mandatory arbitration clauses and class-action waivers are appearing more frequently in contracts, despite Amazon’s recent reversal. Class action settlement rates for 2020 are at 58%.
The select mediators and arbitrators at UWWM’s Center for National Class and Mass Actions have decades of specific experience in class and mass actions and are uniquely qualified to assist you in resolving these legal disputes. For further information and scheduling, please visit our website.
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