Lane Powell Attorneys Erin Wilson and Laura Richardson co-authored an article in Seattle Business magazine’s December 2015 issue titled “My Business Was Hit With a Class Action! What Do I Do?” In the article, Wilson and Richardson discussed ways that small businesses can defend themselves against class action claims, whether they’re wage related, accessibility oriented, or any number of other issues.
Defendants facing class actions are often eager to explore ways to end the case as swiftly as possible. One strategy they frequently consider is whether to offer the named plaintiff the complete relief that he or she seeks in the case through an offer of judgment. The theory is that if the plaintiff has been offered everything he or she could achieve through litigation, then he or she no longer has a personal stake int he case and the named plaintiff cannot move forward in representing the putative class members’ claims — thereby quickly and (relatively) inexpensively resolving the case.