As mentioned above, class action lawsuits are a useful tool to penalize the company for wrongdoing that is diffused over a large set of people. Let's say AT&T o

As mentioned above, class action lawsuits are a useful tool to penalize the company for wrongdoing that is diffused over a large set of people. Let's say AT&T overcharges 5 million people a dollar each, on purpose. I could take them to court to try to get my dollar back, but that would cost me far more than it is worth. There need to be some mechanism by which I can defray that cost among others like me and we can as one unit seek renumeration, otherwise AT&T has no real reason to stay honest because they will almost certainly come out ahead.