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.
Patton is a borough in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, 20 miles (32 km) northwest of Altoona, in an agricultural region. It is part of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania Metropolitan Statistical Area. In 1900, 2,651 people stayed here, and in 1910, 3,907 people inhabited Patton. The population was 2,023 at the 2000 census. Patton is perhaps best known for an important local manufacturer, the Patton Clay Works. The Clay Works were one of the largest clay and brick concerns in the world in the first half of the 1900s. The company manufactured terra cotta products (pipe and tiles), building bricks, and pavers (known as "Patton Pavers"). Bricks made there were used in the construction of the Panama Canal and the pavers were used around the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. The products were made from clay excavated from the area.