class action

noun

: a legal action undertaken by one or more plaintiffs on behalf of themselves and all other persons having an identical interest in the alleged wrong

Examples of class action in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
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An $8 billion class action investors’ lawsuit against Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg and company leaders — current and former — began Wednesday, with claims stemming from the 2018 privacy scandal involving the Cambridge Analytica political consulting firm. Maryclaire Dale, Fortune, 17 July 2025 While blistering customer complaints have piled up over high parking costs and surprise charges, class action lawsuits challenge a deeper issue — alleging that Metropolis is unlawfully accessing DMV records. Stuart Dyos, The Tennessean, 16 July 2025 On Thursday morning, in New Hampshire, U.S. District Judge Joseph Laplante granted class action status to a lawsuit that seeks to protect babies who would be denied birthright citizenship, and granted a temporary block of President Donald Trump’s order from going into effect throughout the country. Daniella Silva, NBC news, 11 July 2025 The suit, filed in the San Diego County Superior Court in March, seeks class action status on behalf of all Californians. Los Angeles Times, 11 July 2025 See All Example Sentences for class action

Word History

First Known Use

1909, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of class action was in 1909

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Class action.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/class%20action. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.

Legal Definition

class action

noun
: an action in which a representative plaintiff sues or a representative defendant is sued on behalf of a class of plaintiffs or defendants who have the same interests in the litigation as their representative and whose rights or liabilities can be more efficiently determined as a group than in a series of individual suits

called also class action suit, class suit

see also certification compare consolidate, joinder, test case at case

Note: Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure sets out the prerequisites for having an action certified as a class action in federal court. Section (a) permits a class action if “(1) the class is so numerous that joinder of all members is impracticable, (2) there are questions of law or fact common to the class, (3) the claims or defenses of the representative parties are typical of the claims or defenses of the class, and (4) the representative parties will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class.” If the action satisfies these requirements, it must then fit into one of three categories: (1) where individual litigation would have varying results requiring the opposing party to act inconsistently toward the class members or would affect the interests of class members who are not parties to the individual action; (2) where the opposing party has acted or refused to act on grounds that are applicable to the class members as a whole and therefore injunctive or declaratory relief with respect to the class members as a whole is appropriate; or, (3) where the questions of law or fact common to the class members outweigh questions that apply to only particular individuals so that a class action is the best method to determine respective rights and liabilities. Using these guidelines, the judge will decide if an action should be certified as a class action.

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