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.
Lotus (formerly, Marshall and Uniontown) is an unincorporated community in El Dorado County, California. It is located 1 mile (1.6 km) west of Coloma, at an elevation of 722 feet (220 m). The settlement was established in 1849 and named for James W. Marshall, discoverer of gold. In 1850, the name was changed to Uniontown to commemorate California's admission to the Union. The name was changed to Lotus with the arrival of the post office in 1881.