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.
Hiko, Nevada, is a small, agrarian community (some say a semi-ghost town) on State Route 318 in Lincoln County. At one time Hiko was the county seat, and a few hundred residents lived nearby, due largely to silver mines in the area. Today, the area is a farming and ranching area, and not much remains of the old town except the cemetery, some mill ruins and a red rock building that was a general store. Most of the residents of Hiko own farms or ranches, and little to no industrial activity takes place there. From 1868 to 1871, Hiko was the county seat of Lincoln County, before being replaced with the current seat, Pioche, Nevada. The Hiko and Crystal Springs provide a large supply of water for the Hiko farms and ranches. The Hiko farming community is located in the north end of the Pahranagat Valley and lies at an elevation of 3869 feet and has a zip code of 89017.