* Applicable Membership or Subscription discounts will be added in your shopping cart
Description: HB Litigation Conferences and Western Alliance Bank present:
Mandatory Arbitration & Class Actions
What attorneys and companies should know about recent decision and proposed legislation.
Description
Arbitration is widely used to resolve disputes because it is designed to be more efficient and cost-effective than litigation. But some say the real cost to individuals is too high; that the class action claim waiver of these clauses is an unenforceable undermining of public policy.
Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg wrote that the Supreme Court’s rulings on mandatory arbitration “have predictably resulted in the deprivation of consumers’ rights to seek redress for losses” and have “insulated powerful economic interests from liability for violations of consumer protection laws.”
Responding to recent legislative proposals to limit mandatory arbitration, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce says consumers, employees, service members, and businesses have all benefited from arbitration’s efficiencies. “Opponents of arbitration exaggerate the alleged unfairness of these agreements,” this pro-business organization says. “The reality is that arbitration providers and the courts ensure that arbitration provisions will be enforced only if they meet basic guarantees of fairness and due process.”
“Stripping consumers’ ability to bring class action claims is ruinous to consumer protection,” says Jennifer M. Oliver of MoginRubin LLP. “Class actions provide restitution to plaintiffs who would otherwise be without recourse either because they cannot afford legal representation, or legal representation is not economical compared with the cost of bringing a single plaintiff’s lawsuit.”
Until the mid-1980s, obligations to arbitrate rested on consent. Then the Supreme Court shifted in favor of precluding consumer and employee federal and state court claims because of arbitration’s procedural advantages. In a recent article about the arbitration clause, Jeremy K. Robinson of CaseyGerry, offered this 2015 quote from the U.S. District Court in Massachusetts In re Nexium (Esomeprazole) Antitrust Litigation:
“Today, forced arbitration bestrides the legal landscape like a colossus, effectively stamping out the individual’s statutory rights wherever inconvenient to the businesses which impose them. What is striking is that, other than the majority of the Supreme Court whose questionable jurisprudence erected this legal monolith, no one thinks they got it right—no one, not the inferior federal courts, not the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and certainly not the academic community. Indeed, even the respected American Arbitration Association withdrew from consumer debt collection arbitration because of ‘fairness and due process concerns.’” (citations omitted)
Understanding the ramifications of these decisions is critical to advising clients on either side of a dispute, or when drafting or challenging contracts. Join us on Oct. 17 for an in-depth discussion and answers to your questions.
Topics Covered:
-
Class action claim waivers
-
Defeating and defending arbitration clauses
-
Delegating the decision to an arbitrator or the judge
-
Review of relevant cases
-
Update on pending legislation
 | | Practice Areas: | | Alternative Dispute Resolution, Litigation & Appeals, Personal Injury & Negligence | | | Online Media Type: | | Audio | | | Production Date: | | 10/17/2019 2:00 PM EDT | | | Level: | | Intermediate | | | Category: | | Standard | | | Duration: | | 1 Hours, 15 Minutes | | | Online Format: | | Live | | | Course Type: | | Public |
Click here for information on subscription discounts and Group Viewing opportunities.
Purchase of this product provides online access for 180 days. If you are purchasing a live webcast, you will receive complimentary access to the on demand version for 180 days once it becomes available. Please note that the on demand and podcast versions may, or may not be accredited in your state.
If you intend to take a course for CLE credit, please make sure your state is listed in the "Accreditation" section to the upper right of the program description. Accreditation displayed is unique to the purchased program format (live conference, live webcast, on demand, podcast). Credit totals listed for live conferences are the maximum credits available. Credits issued will be based upon actual time in attendance. Credit totals for other formats are for complete programs. Partial credit is not available for any online or downloadable format.
West LegalEdcenter will not provide accreditation for states not listed.
CLE Scholarship information
Tuition Assistance for legal professionals taking our programs. Learn more about the program.
This product is intended for individual use by the named purchaser. Group viewings for online programs may be arranged for five or more attorneys within the same organization prior to viewing by emailing west.wlec-sales@thomson.com.
People who bought this program also bought:| There are no current recommendations |
| | |
|
| | • | Jennifer Oliver - Partner, MoginRubin LLP | | • | Jeremy K. Robinson - Partner, CaseyGerry |
| | |
|