For hearing location and details, visit here:  http://www.consumerfinance.gov/blog/save-the-date-newark/

For the CFPB Study Fact Sheet see here.

The report is released at 8:00 a.m. EST here.

For Citizen Works’ Fair Contracts take, see Bob Sullivan at Credit.com here.

For a report by the New York Times on how forced arbitration hurts service members, see here.

Some highlights from the CFPB’s Study Fact Sheet:

• Arbitration clauses can act as a barrier to class actions;…
• Most arbitration agreements prohibit class arbitrations: Over 90 percent of the arbitration agreements the CFPB studied expressly prohibited class arbitrations;….
• No evidence of arbitration clauses leading to lower prices for consumers;….
• Three out of four consumers surveyed did not know if they were subject to an arbitration clause: The CFPB surveyed credit card consumers to analyze the extent to which they were aware of, and understood, arbitration agreements. Over three quarters of those who said they understood what arbitration is acknowledged they did not know whether their credit card agreement contained an arbitration clause. Of those who thought they did know, more than half were incorrect about whether their agreement actually contained an arbitration clause. Among consumers whose contract included an arbitration clause, fewer than 7 percent recognized that they could not sue their credit card issuer in court.