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.
Augusta is an unincorporated community in central Hampshire County, West Virginia. It is located along the Northwestern Turnpike at the northern terminus of Augusta-Ford Hill Road (West Virginia Secondary Route 7) between Shanks and Pleasant Dale, east of Romney. According to the 2000 census, the Augusta community has a population of 4,728. Because of its location at the center of Hampshire County, Augusta is home to the Potomac Highlands Regional Jail, the James M. "Chick" Buckbee Juvenile Center, and the Hampshire County Health Department.