Category Archives: Public Policy

Update: Investor Protection Act and Securities Arbitration

On November 5, I blogged (here) about the House Financial Services Committee’s Investor Protection Act and its provision empowering the SEC to enact regulations banning mandatory arbitration in customer-broker account agreements.  In that post, I wrote: “I don’t quite understand the significance of this provision, as I understood that the SEC already has the authority under the … Continue reading Update: Investor Protection Act and Securities Arbitration →

Investor Protection Act and Securities Arbitration

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Yesterday the House Financial Services Committee voted to recommend that the full House vote on the Investor Protection Act of 2009, H.R. 3817.  While the focus of the bill is to protect investors through enhanced regulations in the securities industry, one provision threatens to eliminate the mandatory arbitration of customer-broker disputes.   Section 201 of the bill … Continue reading Investor Protection Act and Securities Arbitration →

A Report from PIABA’s Annual Meeting

I just returned from the Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association Annual Meeting in Carlsbad, CA, which featured four days of lively and informative panels and breakout sessions for securities arbitration practitioners.   At the opening plenary session, representatives from PIABA, FINRA and NASAA (North American Securities Administrators Association) debated the relative merits of the only securities arbitration forum … Continue reading A Report from PIABA’s Annual Meeting →

Kheel Center Environmental ADR Conference

On November 17, 2009, Pace Law School’s Kheel Center on the Resolution of Environmental Interest Disputes will present an all-day conference at The University Club in New York City (One West 54th St) entitled “Changing Times, Changing Legal Practice: Effective Legal Strategies to Resolve New Environmental Disputes.”   The registration deadline is November 6.  A registration form … Continue reading Kheel Center Environmental ADR Conference →

ADR Meets Bankruptcy: Cross-Purposes or Cross-Pollination?

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Our friends at St.Johns in NYC are hosting an interesting conference on the intersection of bankruptcy and dispute resolution entitled ADR Meets Bankruptcy: Cross-Purposes or Cross-Pollination?  There’s a good line-up of speakers, which should make the program worth your time if you can go.  In this economic climate, I expect there’s plenty of intersection of … Continue reading ADR Meets Bankruptcy: Cross-Purposes or Cross-Pollination? →

Mediating family religious disputes?

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Teaching really does have its rewards.  Last week I emphasized to the students in my Mediation & Arbitration class that one question they should ask themselves throughout the semester is whether the dispute resolution process used in any particular dispute is appropriate for that dispute.  A few days later a student in that class brought this article to … Continue reading Mediating family religious disputes? →

Bank of America Drops Credit Card Dispute Arbitration Requirement

In an interesting development, Bank of America announced yesterday that it would remove its pre-dispute arbitration clause from its credit card agreements.  See AP report here.  This development cannot be a coincidence and surely is tied to the increasing Congressional scrutiny over mandatory consumer arbitration and the National Arbitration Forum’s decision to exit the consumer … Continue reading Bank of America Drops Credit Card Dispute Arbitration Requirement →