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.
Sterling is a city in Whiteside County, Illinois, United States. The population was 15,451 at the 2000 census. Formerly nicknamed "The Hardware Capital of the World", Sterling has long been associated with manufacturing and the steel industry.