Best Legal Course of Action

“Direct Action” vs. Class Action Lawsuit

Several large national law firms have descended upon Florida and other states in a fight to control the giant multi-district class action lawsuits that have been filed all over the United States.  These various lawsuits have now been consolidated for pre-trial procedures in New Orleans.  Rather than joining this multi-district class action suit that has now been consolidated in New Orleans, homeowners should consider filing individual lawsuits in state courts here in Florida.

Roberts & Durkee recommends that victims consider filing a direct individual action in state court rather than joining a large multi-district class action.  This action can be filed on an individual basis or on behalf of a small group of individuals, such as the residents of a well-defined residential community. This strategy has many advantages, including:

• You know your attorney and you know your home will be treated as an individual case even if other homeowners join the suit
• You may benefit from advantages of filing in state court rather than federal court. For example, your case may be resolved more quickly
• Your case will be judged by a jury in your local community
• Your case won’t get lost in a large national suit where damages may be divided among all the plaintiffs

Roberts & Durkee has employed this strategy in the case of Dowdy v. Engle Homes. The suit names publicly traded Engle Builders – builder of the homes in the walled Coral Lakes community – and alleges Engle obtained toxic drywall from China and used it negligently in constructing the homes.  These allegations are the latest among numerous recent Chinese product-safety scandals involving Chinese imports, including milk formula, toothpaste, drugs, toys, seafood and pet food.