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Fortune 1,000 Survey on Mediation, Arbitration and Conflict Management on International Mediation
April 25, 2013
A new study of dispute resolution practices in Fortune 1,000 corporations shows that many large companies are using binding arbitration less often and relying more on mediated negotiation and other approaches aimed at resolving disputes informally, quickly and inexpensively. The 2011 survey of corporate counsel developed by researchers at Cornell University’s Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution, the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law, and the International...
April 25, 2013
A new study of dispute resolution practices in Fortune 1,000 corporations shows that many large companies are using binding arbitration less often and relying more on mediated negotiation and other approaches aimed at resolving disputes informally, quickly and inexpensively. The 2011 survey of corporate counsel developed by researchers at Cornell University’s Scheinman Institute on Conflict Resolution, the Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution at Pepperdine University School of Law, and the International...
Small Business Arbitration Part I: Should we Make Arbitration Part of the Deal?
April 25, 2013
Small businesses (including sole proprietors) frequently must negotiate arms-length commercial transactions with their more economically powerful counterparts and, not infrequently, must decide whether to accept an offer to make an arbitration agreement part of the deal. Whether or not to accept that invitation, and, if so, under what terms, may seem like a straightforward question susceptible to an easy answer, and it can be tempting to think that the risks associated with making the wrong choice...
April 25, 2013
Small businesses (including sole proprietors) frequently must negotiate arms-length commercial transactions with their more economically powerful counterparts and, not infrequently, must decide whether to accept an offer to make an arbitration agreement part of the deal. Whether or not to accept that invitation, and, if so, under what terms, may seem like a straightforward question susceptible to an easy answer, and it can be tempting to think that the risks associated with making the wrong choice...
George Friedman Responds to Dan Solin’s Indictment of FINRA Arbitration
April 23, 2013
Last week, author Dan Solin, a long-time critic of FINRA, published a column in U.S. News & World Report attacking the FINRA arbitration forum as biased, unfair to investors and shrouded in secrecy. Presumably, the column was motivated by a federal judge’s recent decision to deny a FOIA request that PIABA (Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association) filed with the SEC to obtain what Solin describes as “very basic information about the way FINRA administers the arbitration process,...
April 23, 2013
Last week, author Dan Solin, a long-time critic of FINRA, published a column in U.S. News & World Report attacking the FINRA arbitration forum as biased, unfair to investors and shrouded in secrecy. Presumably, the column was motivated by a federal judge’s recent decision to deny a FOIA request that PIABA (Public Investors Arbitration Bar Association) filed with the SEC to obtain what Solin describes as “very basic information about the way FINRA administers the arbitration process,...
The 2013 Texas Legislative Session “Half-Time” Report
April 22, 2013
Every two years, the Texas Legislature convenes for approximately five months. The 83rd legislative general session was gaveled to a start at noon on Tuesday, January 8, 2013, and the 140 day clock is now running. The last day to file legislation was March 8, 2013. It has been estimated that about 6,000 bills were introduced during the current session — some 4,000 in the House and 2,000 in the Senate. The enactment rate for new legislation is generally under 10 percent. The Texas Attorney-Mediators...
April 22, 2013
Every two years, the Texas Legislature convenes for approximately five months. The 83rd legislative general session was gaveled to a start at noon on Tuesday, January 8, 2013, and the 140 day clock is now running. The last day to file legislation was March 8, 2013. It has been estimated that about 6,000 bills were introduced during the current session — some 4,000 in the House and 2,000 in the Senate. The enactment rate for new legislation is generally under 10 percent. The Texas Attorney-Mediators...
Arbitral Immunity and Judicial Review of Arbitral Awards Create Ethical Loopholes in Arbitration
April 19, 2013
Arbitration’s interesting status as quasi-independent of the court system has created perplexing ethical dilemmas. On the one hand, arbitration has been considered separate from the legal system in many important regards, allowing parties the opportunity to receive adjudication in a confidential forum by an expert decision-maker. On the other hand, the rules and expectations of litigation are slowly creeping into arbitration, including discovery and motion practice. Recently, courts have (rightly)...
April 19, 2013
Arbitration’s interesting status as quasi-independent of the court system has created perplexing ethical dilemmas. On the one hand, arbitration has been considered separate from the legal system in many important regards, allowing parties the opportunity to receive adjudication in a confidential forum by an expert decision-maker. On the other hand, the rules and expectations of litigation are slowly creeping into arbitration, including discovery and motion practice. Recently, courts have (rightly)...
Modria Presenting at the Stanford Conference on ODR 4/19/13
April 18, 2013
Modria will be presenting at a free Conference on Online Dispute Resolution at Stanford University, April 19, 2013 from...
April 18, 2013
Modria will be presenting at a free Conference on Online Dispute Resolution at Stanford University, April 19, 2013 from...
Federal Arbitration Act Reigns Supreme
April 18, 2013
In Nitro-Lift Technologies, L.L.C. v. Howard, 133 S. Ct. 500 (2012), the U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned a decision by the Oklahoma Supreme Court that enjoined an arbitration proceeding on the ground that the relevant provision of the underlying employment contract was flatly prohibited by Oklahoma law. According to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Oklahoma Supreme Court had no business interpreting the enforceability of the employment contract under Oklahoma law, at least not before the arbitrator...
April 18, 2013
In Nitro-Lift Technologies, L.L.C. v. Howard, 133 S. Ct. 500 (2012), the U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned a decision by the Oklahoma Supreme Court that enjoined an arbitration proceeding on the ground that the relevant provision of the underlying employment contract was flatly prohibited by Oklahoma law. According to the U.S. Supreme Court, the Oklahoma Supreme Court had no business interpreting the enforceability of the employment contract under Oklahoma law, at least not before the arbitrator...
Killing Them with Kindness: ‘Consumer-Friendly’ Arbitration Clauses after Concepcion
April 17, 2013
In AT&T v. Concepcion, the Supreme Court struck California’s so-called “Discover Bank rule” – a judge-made rule providing that arbitration agreements attended by class action waivers are unenforceable, if those agreements are contained in standard form consumer contracts. But, arguably, Concepcion leaves open and unresolved the viability of a state law challenge to a bilateral arbitration clause which is shown, in a particular case, to impose a forfeiture of the claimant’s ability to vindicate...
April 17, 2013
In AT&T v. Concepcion, the Supreme Court struck California’s so-called “Discover Bank rule” – a judge-made rule providing that arbitration agreements attended by class action waivers are unenforceable, if those agreements are contained in standard form consumer contracts. But, arguably, Concepcion leaves open and unresolved the viability of a state law challenge to a bilateral arbitration clause which is shown, in a particular case, to impose a forfeiture of the claimant’s ability to vindicate...
European Parliament Adopts ODR Legislation
April 16, 2013
The European Union issued a press release on Tuesday March 12, 2013 about the EU Parliament adopting two new legislative...
April 16, 2013
The European Union issued a press release on Tuesday March 12, 2013 about the EU Parliament adopting two new legislative...
How Fortune 1000 Companies Use ADR
April 15, 2013
Last year, a survey was conducted among senior in-house counsel of the Fortune 1000, to follow-up on the findings of the influential...
April 15, 2013
Last year, a survey was conducted among senior in-house counsel of the Fortune 1000, to follow-up on the findings of the influential...
