Mass Tort vs Class Action

India often confuses mass torts with class actions — but they are fundamentally different.

Aspect Mass Tort Class Action
Nature of Injury Individual, varying harm Common, uniform harm
Compensation Case-specific, personalized Equal or formula-based
Control Victims retain individual claims Class represented collectively
Typical Use Personal injury, death, medical harm Consumer, pricing, policy issues
Global Usage Widely used in US, UK, EU Limited in personal injury cases
Why this matters for India:
Indian tragedies rarely cause identical harm. One compensation figure cannot reflect different ages, incomes, medical outcomes, or lifelong consequences. Mass torts allow justice to reflect reality.