When a business engages in predatory practices, chances are high that more than just a few consumers are affected. Thus, class action lawsuits are common in consumer protection cases.

A consumer protection class action lawsuit is one in which a group of similarly situated plaintiffs bring their claims as a group or "class." While not every consumer protection claim is appropriate for class action litigation, this kind of legal action offers plaintiffs many benefits.

• Rather than every plaintiff preparing their own case, plaintiffs can save much work—and expense—by combining similar claims into one lawsuit. This enables a group of plaintiffs to bring claims that collectively amount to significant amounts but may not be worth the cost of pursuing individually.
• Defendants facing a class action consumer protection lawsuit may be more willing to immediately engage in fair negotiations, knowing that they face significant liability for the combined value of many small claims.
• Class action lawsuits can be quicker in many situations. This is because a court can hear one case and render a verdict that applies to a group of similar plaintiffs rather than decide many individual cases over years of litigation.

To bring a class-action lawsuit, the plaintiffs must obtain class certification from the court. While the nuances of class certification are quite complex, it requires the class of plaintiffs to meet the following criteria:

• The plaintiffs making up the class must be identifiable.
• The class must consist of a sufficient number of plaintiffs to make individual litigation impracticable.
• The class members must have all suffered the same type of harm.
• The claims and likely defenses must be similar among plaintiffs.
• The class representative must adequately represent the interests of the individual class members.

Consumer protection claims often make good candidates for class action lawsuits because unfair, fraudulent, and deceptive business practices typically affect many consumers in similar ways.