Employees of a floating casino sued their employer for respiratory illnesses allegedly caused by exposure to secondhand smoke and the casino’s defective ventilation system. The employees sought class action status so that the approximately 100-150 affected employees could sue at one time. The court of appeals agreed that granting class action status was proper because, among other factors, (1) all class members are alleging that they suffered injury from secondhand smoke; (2) the claims of the parties are typical of the claims of the class since all class members have suffered occupation-related respiratory illness; (3) the representative parties will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class; and (4) a class action is superior to other methods of resolving the case.
Some jurisdictions allow an individual or organization to initiate an action against another private party who is not following a particular law. For example, a person may sue a restaurant that allows smoking despite a smoke free law. If the plaintiff is claiming the violation of the law caused physical harm, this may also be a personal injury case.
An individual or organization may seek civil damages against a tobacco company based on the claim that the use of tobacco products causes disease or death. Some of these cases will relate to general tobacco products, while others will relate to specific subcategories of tobacco products--for example, light or low products, menthol or other flavored products. Additionally, there may be cases relating to exposure to secondhand smoke.
Employees of a floating casino sued their employer for respiratory illnesses allegedly caused by exposure to secondhand smoke and the casino’s defective ventilation system. The employees sought class action status so that the approximately 100-150 affected employees could sue at one time. The court of appeals agreed that granting class action status was proper because, among other factors, (1) all class members are alleging that they suffered injury from secondhand smoke; (2) the claims of the parties are typical of the claims of the class since all class members have suffered occupation-related respiratory illness; (3) the representative parties will fairly and adequately protect the interests of the class; and (4) a class action is superior to other methods of resolving the case.