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.
Midpines is an unincorporated community in Mariposa County, California. It is located 12 miles (19 km) southwest of El Portal, at an elevation of 2585 feet (788 m). It lies among the Sierra Nevada foothills of the central part of the state, 6 to 10 miles north of Mariposa, the county seat. It is composed of scattered residential areas along both sides of State Route 140, which is one of three principal routes to Yosemite National Park, some 30 miles to the east of Midpines. Midpines began as a resort, founded by Newell D. Chamberlain, in 1926. The first post office opened in 1929.