If you’ve looked into joining a group legal claim, you might have stumbled across terms like “opt-out” or “GLO”, and then quietly closed the tab. You’re not alone.
Legal jargon has a habit of getting in the way. But understanding a few key terms can make the whole process feel far less daunting, and might even help you decide whether to get involved.
Here’s a quick breakdown of some phrases you’re likely to come across when you join a group action compensation claim.
Opt-in vs opt-out
These terms explain how people are included in a group claim.
- Opt-in means you must actively sign up to be part of the claim. You’ll usually fill in a form or go through a claims process to join.
- Opt-out means you’re automatically included if you meet certain criteria, such as living in a specific country or buying from a specific company, unless you take action to remove yourself.
In the UK, both approaches exist. Most cases are opt-in, especially if they involve a Group Litigation Order (GLO). But certain claims, may follow the opt-out model, meaning you might be part of a claim without realising.
However, just to make things even more confusing, while you might think that opt-out means you don’t need to do anything at all – that’s not always true. Sometimes, even if you’re “in” by default, you will need to take action at some point to make sure you don’t miss out. Often that means registering your details to claim your share of any compensation that’s awarded.
That’s why it’s worth keeping an eye on claims that affect you.
GLOs (Group Litigation Orders)
A Group Litigation Order (GLO) is a special type of court order used in England and Wales. It allows the High Court to manage lots of individual legal claims that are all about the same issue, like a faulty product, data breach, or financial wrongdoing.
Think of it like this: instead of the court dealing with hundreds or even thousands of similar claims one by one, a GLO brings them together under one umbrella. Each person still has their own separate claim, but they’re grouped so they can be managed more efficiently.
Representative actions
A representative action is a type of group claim where one person (or sometimes more) brings a case on behalf of everyone else in the same position.
The catch? Everyone in the group must have the same interest, meaning their legal rights and the type of harm they’ve suffered must be virtually identical. Because that standard is so strict, representative actions are rare and often face legal challenges.
These claims don’t require individuals to actively join in at the start, but they don’t always lead to automatic compensation. If the case is successful, affected individuals might still need to take further steps to receive anything.
Class Action
You might hear the phrase class action in the news or on US-based websites. It’s a familiar term in American legal systems, but not technically used in the UK.
Here, we use terms like group litigation, group action, GLO, or representative action instead, though the general idea is the same: a group of people collectively taking legal action against a common defendant.
Want to learn more?
Still curious? We’ve put together a plain-English jargon buster to help you make sense of it all. No law degree required.
If you’re thinking about joining a group action but feel overwhelmed by the terminology, this one’s for you.
