Class Action / Arbitration Waivers
“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…
Read MoreFifteen 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…
Read MoreInterviews 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…
Read MoreFair 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…
Read MoreSee 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
Read More“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.…
Read MoreToday 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…
Read MoreIn 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…
Read MoreAn 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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