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I'm really just asking for curiosity's sake, but who typically prosecutes mass torts? I'm particularly interested in environmental issues, ie toxic torts, environmental disasters, toxic waste, etc. Are there many plaintiffs' firms like Milberg? Or do gov't agencies like the EPA bring cases? Or do they just absolve the businesses and clean up after them like with superfunds?

I would be really interested in something along these lines, but I would be loath to work for the defence in most cases. Are big plaintiff's firms too far apart and few between to think about it? Do they abuse the tort system?

What the OP may look like:

These type of suits are most often brought by the Federal Government, States, and public interest groups like NRDC or the Sierra Club. Some of these NGO's have pretty tremendous legal resources. As far as I know there aren't really many traditional "firms" that prosecute cases like these, if you want to go into this field, you'll almost definitely be working in PI or for the government.

LawandOrder wrote:What the OP may look like:

Please -- My legs are way more toned.

splat wrote:These type of suits are most often brought by the Federal Government, States, and public interest groups like NRDC or the Sierra Club. Some of these NGO's have pretty tremendous legal resources. As far as I know there aren't really many traditional "firms" that prosecute cases like these, if you want to go into this field, you'll almost definitely be working in PI or for the government.

I've been doing a bit of research: what about Berger & Montague; Bernstein Liebhard; Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy; Hagens Berman; Lieff Cabraser; -- the list goes on really. And it seems if you're willing to go outside of toxic torts and environmental disasters, the list grows -- consumer fraud, discrimination suits, antitrust, etc.

In fact, the above seems almost patently false. These firms are all hired on by the state for the big cases: Berger & Montague were on the Exxon Valdez case and represented Connecticut against big tobacco, for example.

Hm. It seems there are many, many 'firms' that bring cases like this. They seem to be called 'plaintiffs' firms'.