As many of our readers know, the ABA Dispute Resolution Section, LEAPS project sponsors a website that includes resources for teaching practical problem-solving and professional skills.  To faciliate being a resource for professors who would like to move away from lecture-based formats in teaching “doctrinal” courses, the LEAPS executive committee is developing a list of textbooks that incorporate … Continue reading Looking for law textbooks that incorporate problem-solving teaching →

BNA has reported that FINRA has implemented a new policy and will now conduct annual background checks as well as an additional review of arbitrators before appointing them to new cases.  This change in policy was prompted by FINRA’s discovery last year that one of its arbitrators had been indicted for the uanuthorized practice of law. … Continue reading FINRA to conduct background checks on arbitrators →

I have had a few days to digest the Supreme Court’s most recent opinions interpreting the Federal Arbitration Act (Oxford Health Plans LLC v. Sutter, see blog post here; and American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant, see blog posts here and here) and offer the following reflections: Sutter affirmed the broad power of the arbitrators to decide … Continue reading Reflections on 2013 Supreme Court Arbitration Decisions →

This blog post is from FOI, Prof. Jean Sternlight: On the theory that the worst Supreme Court arbitration ever is worth a second post, here is mine to supplement what Jill Gross has already posted. The Supreme Court’s decision today in American Express v. Italian Colors is ghastly, at least from the perspective of those who … Continue reading American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant Guts Enforcement of Federal Laws →

The Supreme Court released today its eagerly-awaited decision (at least in the ADR world) in AMEX v. Italian Colors.  In overturning the Second Circuit’s refusal to enforce a class action waiver on the ground that plaintiffs could not vindicate their statutory rights under the federal antitrust laws, the Court, in a 5-3 opinion authored by Justice Scalia (public … Continue reading Supreme Court Overturns Second Circuit in AMEX v Italian Colors →

Despite increasing pressure on the SEC to exercise its Dodd-Frank-granted explicit authority to ban mandatory securities arbitration, SEC Commissioner Elisse Walter stated earlier this week, according to a report in Reuters, that the Commission won’t have time to address the issue until 2014, in light of the other mandates of Dodd-Frank.  It’s a shame that the … Continue reading SEC Won’t Have Time to Tackle Issue of Mandatory Securities Arbitration →

Yesterday I blogged about stepped-up political pressures on the Securities and Exchange Commission to outlaw mandatory arbitration agreements in customers’ account agreements with their brokerage firms.  The pressures are not coming just from politicians.  Last week, a Tennessee appellate court refused to enforce a pre-dispute arbitration clause in a brokerage firms’ account agreement with a customer … Continue reading Tennessee court invalidates brokerage firm’s arbitration clause as unconscionable →

In the wake of a FINRA disciplinary hearing panel decision not to enforce its own rules against broker-dealer Charles Schwab barring class action waivers in customer-broker account agreements because of the Federal Arbitration Act (see my previous blog posts about that decision here and here), investor rights advocates have stepped up their efforts to press the Securities … Continue reading Added Pressure on SEC to Eliminate Mandatory Securities Arbitration →