>I'd also argue they are not the ideal instrument, as they rarely actually achieve any real gains for the individuals.

I can't say whether or not the process is ideal, but I can say that the benefit to individuals is irrelevant. The COLLECTIVE - the whole society - benefits in a big way when the behavior of a large corporation doing very small harm to thousands or millions of individuals is punished and deterred. The bar for success can't always be directed at individuals; there are very positive societal level benefits that are small to individuals but huge to the whole ecosystem.