Class action defense spend hits $4.53B and is forecast to reach $4.8B

The 2026 Carlton Fields Class Action Survey, based on interviews with more than 300 general counsel and senior legal officers, found US class action defense spending reached $4.53 billion in 2025, up 7.6% from 2024. Carlton Fields forecasts spending will rise almost 6% to $4.8 billion in 2026, with 74.7% of companies dealing with class actions and spending nearly doubling since 2018. For corporate legal departments, class actions are a spend category that now requires portfolio-level procurement discipline, not matter-by-matter crisis budgeting. For firms, the opportunity is real, but so is client pressure around staffing, predictability and outcomes.