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Arbitration
Arbitration Agreement Between Law Firm and Client is Enforceable
November 12, 2015
In Parallel Networks, LLC v. Jenner & Block, LLP, the Fifth District Court of Appeals examined the trial court's judgment confirming an arbitration award. The law firm, Jenner & Block, represented Parallel in patent infringement litigation pursuant to a contingent fee agreement. Jenner & Block later terminated its professional relationship with Parallel and alleged that Parallel owed it attorneys' fees--both under an hourly fee arrangement and a contingency fee arrangement. Jenner & Block filed...
November 12, 2015
In Parallel Networks, LLC v. Jenner & Block, LLP, the Fifth District Court of Appeals examined the trial court's judgment confirming an arbitration award. The law firm, Jenner & Block, represented Parallel in patent infringement litigation pursuant to a contingent fee agreement. Jenner & Block later terminated its professional relationship with Parallel and alleged that Parallel owed it attorneys' fees--both under an hourly fee arrangement and a contingency fee arrangement. Jenner & Block filed...
Arbitration vs. Litigation: It’s Not An Either-Or Proposition
November 11, 2015
The New York Times drew a lot of criticism, from me and others, for its three-part series on arbitration that largely ignored the wealthy special-interest group that opposes arbitration the most: Class-action lawyers. In an editorial today the Times repeats the error, equating arbitration with a “shift away from the civil justice system,” as if people with $2 disputes over their cell phones could recover any meaningful relief through a conventional lawsuit. Arbitration is part of the civil...
November 11, 2015
The New York Times drew a lot of criticism, from me and others, for its three-part series on arbitration that largely ignored the wealthy special-interest group that opposes arbitration the most: Class-action lawyers. In an editorial today the Times repeats the error, equating arbitration with a “shift away from the civil justice system,” as if people with $2 disputes over their cell phones could recover any meaningful relief through a conventional lawsuit. Arbitration is part of the civil...
Agreement to Arbitrate Employment Agreement Enforceable
November 11, 2015
In Ophthalmic Consultants of Texas, P.A. v. Morales, the Thirteenth District Court of Appeals held that the agreement to arbitrate...
November 11, 2015
In Ophthalmic Consultants of Texas, P.A. v. Morales, the Thirteenth District Court of Appeals held that the agreement to arbitrate...
No, Arbitration Isn’t Evil, But Safeguards Are Needed
November 10, 2015
There seems to be a lot of confusion about arbitration. Judging by recent media accounts, it's a crooked business designed by thieves for the purpose of cheating the virtuous. Richard Cordray, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, was recently quoted in this newspaper saying, "Consumers should not be asked to sign away their legal rights when they open a banking account or credit card. Companies are using the arbitration clause as a free pass to sidestep the courts and avoid accountability...
November 10, 2015
There seems to be a lot of confusion about arbitration. Judging by recent media accounts, it's a crooked business designed by thieves for the purpose of cheating the virtuous. Richard Cordray, director of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, was recently quoted in this newspaper saying, "Consumers should not be asked to sign away their legal rights when they open a banking account or credit card. Companies are using the arbitration clause as a free pass to sidestep the courts and avoid accountability...
NPR Also Focuses on the Spread of Arbitration
November 6, 2015
Once something turns up on the mainstream media, it often goes viral. Let's hope that's the case with The New York Times series on the dangers of the Supreme Court's recent jurisprudence on arbitration and class action waivers. Part III, which focuses on religious arbitration, is here. My student, Collin Johnson, called to my attention some reports on National Public Radio on the same subject. You can read or listen here and here. The second reports on efforts by the Federal Consumer Financial...
November 6, 2015
Once something turns up on the mainstream media, it often goes viral. Let's hope that's the case with The New York Times series on the dangers of the Supreme Court's recent jurisprudence on arbitration and class action waivers. Part III, which focuses on religious arbitration, is here. My student, Collin Johnson, called to my attention some reports on National Public Radio on the same subject. You can read or listen here and here. The second reports on efforts by the Federal Consumer Financial...
Online Dispute Resolution and the Future of Consumer Protection
November 5, 2015
You may have seen the series of articles currently running in the New York Times about unfairness in consumer arbitration....
November 5, 2015
You may have seen the series of articles currently running in the New York Times about unfairness in consumer arbitration....
Mandatory Arbitration in Consumer Finance and Investor Contracts
November 4, 2015
Michael S. Barr, Roy F. and Jean Humphrey Proffitt Professor of Law at the University of Michigan Law School, has published “Mandatory Arbitration in Consumer Finance and Investor Contracts,” New York University Journal of Law and Business, Vol. 11, No. 4, 2015. In his article, Professor Barr argues that federal agencies should use their authority under the Dodd-Frank Act to restrict or eliminate the use of arbitration provisions in consumer finance and investment contracts. Here is the abstract: Mandatory...
November 4, 2015
Michael S. Barr, Roy F. and Jean Humphrey Proffitt Professor of Law at the University of Michigan Law School, has published “Mandatory Arbitration in Consumer Finance and Investor Contracts,” New York University Journal of Law and Business, Vol. 11, No. 4, 2015. In his article, Professor Barr argues that federal agencies should use their authority under the Dodd-Frank Act to restrict or eliminate the use of arbitration provisions in consumer finance and investment contracts. Here is the abstract: Mandatory...
“Older Workers” Do Not Have To Arbitrate Statutory Employment Claim
November 4, 2015
Arbitration is having its 15 minutes of fame. Thanks to a series in the New York Times, my inbox is full of links to the articles, questions about the information, and fascinating commentary. [Next time I am in Oakland, I am totally having the “Scalia” cocktail at Italian Colors.] With the far-reaching audience of the NYT, the policy questions surrounding waivers of class arbitration are no longer just a conversation among in-house counsel, advocates, and law professors, but reached the general...
November 4, 2015
Arbitration is having its 15 minutes of fame. Thanks to a series in the New York Times, my inbox is full of links to the articles, questions about the information, and fascinating commentary. [Next time I am in Oakland, I am totally having the “Scalia” cocktail at Italian Colors.] With the far-reaching audience of the NYT, the policy questions surrounding waivers of class arbitration are no longer just a conversation among in-house counsel, advocates, and law professors, but reached the general...
In Religious Arbitration, Scripture Is the Rule of Law
November 4, 2015
For generations, religious tribunals have been used in the United States to settle family disputes and spiritual debates. But through arbitration, religion is being used to sort out secular problems like claims of financial fraud and wrongful death. Customers who buy bamboo floors from Higuera Hardwoods in Washington State must take any dispute before a Christian arbitrator, according to the company’s website. Carolina Cabin Rentals, which rents high-end vacation properties in the Blue Ridge...
November 4, 2015
For generations, religious tribunals have been used in the United States to settle family disputes and spiritual debates. But through arbitration, religion is being used to sort out secular problems like claims of financial fraud and wrongful death. Customers who buy bamboo floors from Higuera Hardwoods in Washington State must take any dispute before a Christian arbitrator, according to the company’s website. Carolina Cabin Rentals, which rents high-end vacation properties in the Blue Ridge...
Types of Political Risk Leading to Investment Arbitrations in the Oil & Gas Sector
November 3, 2015
It is often believed that investment arbitrations are filed because some form of political risk materialized, harming the investor’s interests. This is the hypothesis that the authors examine in this article, focusing on the oil & gas sector. They analyze which types of political risk, present in the host state, eventually lead oil & gas investors to file investment arbitration claims against that state. They find statistical evidence supporting the idea that bad governance and economic nationalism...
November 3, 2015
It is often believed that investment arbitrations are filed because some form of political risk materialized, harming the investor’s interests. This is the hypothesis that the authors examine in this article, focusing on the oil & gas sector. They analyze which types of political risk, present in the host state, eventually lead oil & gas investors to file investment arbitration claims against that state. They find statistical evidence supporting the idea that bad governance and economic nationalism...
