I just learned (from my colleague Jim Fishman, who, in turn, learned from the AALS Contracts listserv, which in turn referenced a post on the Volokh Conspiracy blog) that the Trump Campaign makes a volunteer sign an adhesion contract (perfectly legitimate, IMHO).  Among the terms is an arbitration clause, which itself may not be so … Continue reading Trump Campaign’s Contract with its Volunteers Mandates Arbitration Unilaterally →

In May 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released for public comment a proposed rule to regulate two aspects of consumer financial service arbitration.  First, the CFPB proposed to bar consumer financial services companies (as defined in the proposed regulations) from including class action waivers in their customer agreements.  Second, the CFPB proposed to require … Continue reading ABA Section of Dispute Resolution Comments on CFPB Rule Proposal →

Last Friday, FINRA issued Regulatory Notice 16-25 reminding member firms that, under FINRA Rules 12200 and 13200, they have a regulatory duty to arbitrate at the request of a customer (account-related disputes) or an associated person (employment disputes). The Notice cited a number of recent circuit court decisions holding that a forum selection clause in … Continue reading FINRA Reminds Broker-Dealer Firms of Their Duty to Arbitrate →

For those of you with access to the subscription-based New York Law Journal, today’s paper has a special pull-out section on Arbitration, with a spotlight on consumer agreements.  The digital (subscription-only) version can be accessed here.  Articles cover the CFPB’s rule proposal banning class action waivers, the mandatory arbitration clause debate, nuts and bolts of … Continue reading Today’s NYLJ: Special section on arbitration with spotlight on consumer agreements →

  From Professors Gomez (FIU) and Strong (Missouri): The Academic Council of the Institute for Transnational Arbitration is pleased to announce the launch of a new website, International Dispute Resolution Resources for Legal Educators.  The goal of this project is to gather, classify, and disseminate syllabi, notes, exercises, exams, and other original teaching materials prepared by international arbitration teachers … Continue reading New website with resources for educators in international dispute resolution →

From FOI Jean Sternlight: The Seventh Circuit has just issued a very important decision, Lewis v. Epic Systems Corp., banning the use of an arbitral class/collective action prohibition in a non-unionized wage and hour claim. The decision is based on Section 7 of the National Labor Relations Act, which protects the right of all employees, … Continue reading Seventh Circuit Protects Employees’ Right to Bring Collective Actions, Despite Arbitral Waiver →

I apologize for interrupting the steady stream of John Lande photo albums to report that the first comment letter on the Consumer Financial Protection’s Bureau proposal (regulation CFPB-2016-0020, RIN 3170-AA51) to ban class action waivers in consumer financial agreements has been posted on the CFPB website.  Thanks to the incredible drafting and organizing efforts of … Continue reading 210 Professors Sign Comment Letter on CFPB Proposed Ban on Class Action Waivers →

I am proud to announce that Pace Law School has been renamed the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University in honor of the late German philanthropist and environmental advocate, who has had a long partnership with our law school.  See Press Release, here.  Pace will become the first law school to be named … Continue reading Pace Law Renamed for Environmentalist →

I join the nation in mourning over the loss of Justice Antonin Scalia this past weekend.  Though I rarely agreed with his written opinions, he certainly did provoke and engage in healthy debates about critical issues, which are incredibly important to a functioning democracy. Having just published an article critiquing three of his most recent … Continue reading Justice Scalia and Arbitration →

Most of us saw John’s post a few days ago regarding the open position of Director of the ABA Dispute Resolution Section (here). For those who were wondering what happened to David Moora, the former Director, here is the announcement:     After serving as Director of the ABA Dispute Resolution Section for five years, … Continue reading ABA DR Section – What happened to the former Director? →