Class Actions

The resolution of commercial disputes is the core of our practice. Our team provides its clients with valuable expertise across a variety of industries and types of disputes. Our team of accounting and financial professionals has significant experience with class action matters. We assist our clients with all phases of class action lawsuits, from class certification to trial testimony. VERTEX professionals develop clear and concise assessments of forensic accounting issues to effectively communicate our conclusions to our clients, judges, and juries. VERTEX professionals include Certified Public Accountants, Certified Management Accountants, Certified Fraud Examiners, and other specialists skilled in complex financial analysis. Our experts have provided testimony in both state and federal court, as well as arbitrations and mediations.

Select Case Examples

• Retained by counsel for plaintiffs of several class action lawsuits involving the following pharmaceutical supplements: Vitamin E; Oscillo: Ginko Biloba; Pur Luv; Biotin; Flavored Coffee Creamer. Work included calculation of class-wide damages at the class certification phase related to common methods for reasonably calculating class-wide damages.
• Retained by counsel for the defendants of two class action lawsuits related to insurance policies covering storm damage to homes in the state of Missouri. Work included testimony (dep and trial) about the unique nature of claims and lack of a common approach/method to quantifying damages.
• Retained by counsel for the defendants of a theme park related to a class action lawsuit involving ticket pricing. Assisted counsel rebut class certification by demonstrating that there was no common approach available to estimate class damages, but instead, each claim was unique.
• Assisted counsel for a national bank rebut class action damages related to alleged improper capitalization of interest on school loans under the Servicemember’s Civil Relief Act. Assisted counsel successfully settle the matter prior to class certification. Assisted counsel for a national bank rebut class action damages related to alleged improper application of Servicemember’s Civil Relief Act interest rate relief on mortgages. Assisted counsel successfully settle the matter prior to class certification.

More About Class Actions

A commercial damages class action lawsuit is a legal procedure where a single plaintiff, acting as a representative for a larger group of people or businesses (the “class”), sues a defendant for financial losses caused by the defendant’s alleged wrongdoing. These lawsuits typically involve complex commercial disputes, often regarding breaches of contract, fraud, or anti-competitive practices. For a class action to be certified by the court, several requirements must be met including numerosity, commonality, typicality and adequacy.

Numerosity: The class must be so large that individual lawsuits would be impractical or inefficient.

Commonality: The legal issues and claims of the class members must be similar enough to justify a single lawsuit.

Typicality: The representative plaintiff’s claims must be typical of the claims of the class members.

Adequacy: The representative plaintiff and their lawyer must be able to adequately represent the interests of the entire class. VERTEX experts have in-depth services including contract review, valuation, contract review and standard of care.