A mass tort is a civil action involving numerous plaintiffs against one or a few corporate defendants. The tort may involve, for example, personal injuries suffered by numerous plaintiffs as a result of a defective product, or a mass disaster in which there were many injured persons, such as an airplane crash, or exposure of a large group of people to toxic chemicals or pharmaceuticals.
Fort Bragg is a city located in coastal Mendocino County, California along State Route 1, the major north-south highway along the Pacific Coast. Fort Bragg is located 24 miles (39 km) west of Willits, at an elevation of 85 feet (26 m). Founded as a military fort prior to the American Civil War, Fort Bragg is now a popular tourist destination due to its picturesque views of the Pacific Ocean and rugged Northern California coastline. The population was 7,026 at the 2000 census.