[consumerpro]

After you have hired a class action attorney, his or her first step will be to investigate the class action case and prepare a "complaint." A class action complaint is the legal document that starts a case. It explains the factual basis for the lawsuit and explains why, assuming those facts are true, the defendant broke the law. In the complaint, your class action lawyer will identify the case as a "Class Action" and explain why the court should recognize it as a class action instead of an individual suit.

One of your attorney's key considerations will be where to file the class action lawsuit. Most class actions are filed in state court, but sometimes they may be filed in federal court. Also, they are usually filed in the state where the wrongful conduct occurred. Sometimes, however, they must be filed in other states (for example, if a contract governing the transaction in dispute requires it.)

Although the filing of a class action complaint is a relatively easy thing to do, no ethical class action attorney will file a class action suit before having very good reason to think the defendant is breaking the law. The reason for this is that class actions can be powerful weapons.

Class action suits are more likely to generate media attention and can cause a great deal of concern to the defendant. Those are good things when the defendant has broken the law. However, a class action lawyer who hasn't done his homework can cost an innocent defendant thousands of dollars.