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.
Yucca Valley is an incorporated town located in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 16,865 at the 2000 census. However, the town's highway sign lists the current population at 25,500. Yucca Valley lies 17 miles (27 km) west of Twentynine Palms, 37 miles (60 km) north of Palm Springs, 89 miles (143 km) south of Barstow via State Route 247, 45 miles (72 km) southeast of Lucerne Valley and 55 miles (89 km) east of San Bernardino. Bordered in the west by the San Bernardino Mountains and in the south by the Joshua Tree National Park, the Yucca Valley community is located in the Mojave Desert at 3,300 feet (1,000 m) above sea level.