Tiered structures group claims by qualifying injury, severity, age, and sometimes product use duration, assigning a base value to each tier. Adjustments may apply for factors such as alternative causes or comorbidities.
Tiers reduce the need for individual valuation.
Alternative Names:
Tiered Compensation, Matrix Settlement
Why it Matters?
Tiering is what makes aggregate resolution administrable, since individually valuing thousands of claims is impossible within any reasonable timeframe. The design tradeoff is precision against speed, because more tiers and adjustment factors produce fairer outcomes and slower administration. Defendants generally prefer fewer tiers with clear criteria, since ambiguity generates appeals that extend the program's duration and cost.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
Why use tiers rather than individual valuation?
What is the design tradeoff?
