California has a state procedure version of the MDL federal procedure. I believe they defined it as a “complex, civil action”, but it works like an MDL -with the case consolidated into a judicial council coordinated proceeding.(JCCP). This allows for coordinated pre-trial discovery and motions and Bellwether trials.
Off the top of my head I think you guys have a two year SOL, so I agree with brisket that it is easy to get one of your buddies to file your claim and then sit around for years, waiting for some resolution.
But the problem with mass resolutions of MDL type cases are that there are never or almost never any penalty damages awarded for bad faith. While not a class action, the same issues of commonality and a typicality predominate. Not every insurance policy has the exact same language, not every insurance policy was issued at the same time, not every claimant has the same damage facts, etc.
Trust me, there are enough plaintiff lawyers out there right now figuring out who they can sue and what they can sue for. But I would recommend getting legal council to make sure you don’t screw up some contractual duty, or otherwise prejudice your case before you get a chance to dig into the merits. The most important reason to do that is so you don’t go crazy thinking about this stuff every day.
I am not a California lawyer, but from now on, do not have a single communication with your insurer that is not in writing somehow. And always make sure you have several estimates for the repair or other remediation work to submit timely. Always give your insurer the opportunity to do the wrong thing, with that wrong thing being totally documented.
Good luck, buddy.
ps, I’m fairly positive that this ground has been plowed before, and the interpretation of those fire remediation language issues has been discussed in a lot of prior cases.