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.
Beatrice (with the stress on the a) is a city in Gage County, Nebraska, 40 miles (64 km) south of Lincoln on the Big Blue River. Named for the daughter of John F. Kinney, Beatrice Kinney, Beatrice is surrounded by rich agricultural country. Settled in 1859, Beatrice was incorporated as a town in 1871 and became a city two years later. In 1900, 7,875 people lived in Beatrice and 10,883 populated Beatrice in 1940. The population was 12,496 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Gage County. The city's name is pronounced "Bee-AT-russ". This pronunciation is credited to a brass-voiced railroad conductor.