Class Action / Arbitration Waivers

“What your bank owes you: clarity”

By theresa / January 13, 2015 / Comments Off on “What your bank owes you: clarity”

“What your bank owes you:  clarity” An OpEd by Professor Lauren E. Willis and Citizen Works’ executive director Theresa Amato in the Los Angeles Times discusses the limits of financial literacy education and the resulting need to enforce the laws, ban class action waivers and forced arbitration clauses, and restructure industry incentives.  Excerpt: “Trying to…

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Fifteen State Attorneys General Send the CFPB a Letter Urging Regulation of Forced Pre-Dispute Arbitration

By theresa / November 21, 2014 / Comments Off on Fifteen State Attorneys General Send the CFPB a Letter Urging Regulation of Forced Pre-Dispute Arbitration

Fifteen State Attorneys General Send the CFPB a Letter Urging Regulation of Forced Pre-Dispute Arbitration   On November 20,  fifteen state Attorneys General sent the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau a letter urging the CFPB to use its authority to regulate forced arbitration provisions in consumer financial contracts.  They wrote: “Mandatory pre-dispute arbitration is procedurally unfair to…

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Interviews on American Express Co. et al. v. Italian Colors Restaurant et al. with Appellate Litigator Deepak Gupta and Professor Margaret Jane Radin

By theresa / June 28, 2013 / Comments Off on Interviews on American Express Co. et al. v. Italian Colors Restaurant et al. with Appellate Litigator Deepak Gupta and Professor Margaret Jane Radin

Interviews on American Express Co. et al. v. Italian Colors Restaurant et al. with Appellate Litigator Deepak Gupta and Professor Margaret Jane Radin: In the week following the Court’s decision in American Express Co. et al. v. Italian Colors Restaurant et al., Fair Contracts asked the experienced appellate advocate who argued the case on behalf…

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Another Supreme Court Pro-Arbitration Win for Corporations

By theresa / June 20, 2013 / Comments Off on Another Supreme Court Pro-Arbitration Win for Corporations
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Fair Contracts Submits Comments to the CFPB on the Forced Arbitration Study

By theresa / June 25, 2012 / Comments Off on Fair Contracts Submits Comments to the CFPB on the Forced Arbitration Study

Fair Contracts’ 2012 Contract Reform Team submitted comments to the Consumer Financial Protect Bureau in response to their request for information regarding the study on "pre-dispute arbitration agreements," which we call "forced arbitration." Special thanks to Patrick Gleeson of Loyola University Chicago School of Law for all his work on this project.  Citizen Works also…

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Three Pieces on Forced Arbitration in the Fine Print

By theresa / March 7, 2012 / Comments Off on Three Pieces on Forced Arbitration in the Fine Print

See these three great pieces on Forced Arbitration in the Fine Print http://www.nytimes.com/2012/03/07/opinion/stuck-in-arbitration.html?ref=todayspaper http://centerjd.org/content/fact-sheet-mandatory-binding-arbitration-corporate-end-run-around-civil-justice-system http://www.thepoptort.com/2012/03/mandatory-binding-arbitration-gets-a-super-critique.html

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Arbitration: Is It Fair When Forced? Senate Hearing and Legislation

By theresa / October 14, 2011 / Comments Off on Arbitration: Is It Fair When Forced? Senate Hearing and Legislation

“Arbitration: Is It Fair When Forced?” On October 13, 2011, Senator Al Franken (D-MN) presided over a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing titled: “Arbitration: Is It Fair When Forced?” Excellent testimony was presented on how binding mandatory arbitration deprives consumers of their day in court.   Citizen Works signed on to the coalition letter supporting this legislation.…

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The Supreme Court Rules Against Consumers By Allowing Companies to Enforce Unconscionable Class Action Waivers in the Forced Arbitration Provisions of Fine Print Contracts

By theresa / April 27, 2011 / Comments Off on The Supreme Court Rules Against Consumers By Allowing Companies to Enforce Unconscionable Class Action Waivers in the Forced Arbitration Provisions of Fine Print Contracts

Today the Supreme Court ruled 5-4 in a closely-watched case that waivers of class action rights within arbitration provisions in company contracts are enforceable, even where a state deems those provisions to be unconscionable. The case involves two consumers, Vincent and Liza Concepcion, who bought cell phones that AT& T advertised as discounted (one phone…

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Fighting back against forced arbitration in securities agreements.

By theresa / October 16, 2010 / Comments Off on Fighting back against forced arbitration in securities agreements.

In this piece, finance writer John Wasik, explains how "wronged investors may still be stuck in a troubled system run by the brokerage industry" but how one investor — Hollywood’s Larry “JR Ewing” Hagman — fought back, and won.  As Wasik explains: "When you sign any standard brokerage agreement, you are locked into their mandatory…

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Bland, Paul – “The Rent-A-Center Case” (1 min., 42 sec.)

By faircontracts / September 13, 2010 / Comments Off on Bland, Paul – “The Rent-A-Center Case” (1 min., 42 sec.)

An excerpt from the Round Table Discussion on Standard Form Contracts (The Fine Print in Contracts of Adhesion), June 4th, 2010 at the Carnegie Center in Washington, DC. Paul Bland is a Senior Attorney at Public Justice. www.publicjustice.net Bland Rent A Center Case.mp3

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