Typicality

Whether the named plaintiff’s experience matches the class.

Typicality asks whether the representative’s claim arises from the same conduct and rests on the same legal theory as the class. An unusual fact pattern makes a poor representative even for a strong case.

It is why a report describing an ordinary, well-documented version of a practice is more useful than a dramatic outlier.

Related terms

• Class action - One lawsuit brought on behalf of everyone harmed the same way.
• Class representative - The named person who stands in for the whole class.
• Class certification - The court ruling that lets one case speak for everyone.
• Arbitration clause - Contract language sending disputes to a private forum instead of court.
• Class-action waiver - A term saying you may only bring a claim for yourself, never as a group.
• Unconscionability - A contract term so one-sided a court refuses to enforce it.
• Contract of adhesion - A take-it-or-leave-it contract with no room to negotiate.
• Assent - Whether you actually agreed, and how the company proved it.