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.
Benton Harbor is a city in Berrien County in the U.S. state of Michigan southwest from Kalamazoo. The population was 11,182 at the 2000 census. It is the lesser populated of the two principal cities included in the Niles-Benton Harbor, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area. It is the administrative home of Whirlpool Corporation, which acquired the Maytag Corporation in 2006, making it the world's largest producer of home appliances. Sites of interest are Shiloh House, built in 1910, which served as the administration building and men's dormitory for the House of David colony, a communal religious group; Morton House (on Morton Hill), built in 1849 by Eleazar Morton, which now houses a museum; nearby Sarett Nature Center, a 300-acre wildlife sanctuary which offers trails, an interpretative building, and classes, and Jean Klock Park on Lake Michigan. Near Benton Harbor is a large fruit market which replaced the prior fruit market located in the "flats" area of Benton Harbor, which was torn down during an urban renewal project during the 1960s. Benton Harbor and the City of St. Joseph (which is located across the St. Joseph River) are known locally as the "Twin Cities". Fair Plain and Benton Heights are unincorporated areas adjacent to Benton Harbor.