Consumer Law

Surprise! Turns Out, Mandatory Arbitration is Fair?Not!

By Andy Hoffman

Well, that didn?t take long.  Just in time for Congress?s recent introduction of the Arbitration Fairness Act,  which is designed to protect consumers from having ridiculously one-sided arbitration agreements shoved down their throats, the Wall Street Journal?s law blog is encouraging us to ?rejoice? because a new ?study? shows that the dreaded process is actually ?fair.? 

Then again, as Paul Bland, a staff attorney at Public Justice pointed out, the study has a few flaws?like say, limiting its examination to the practices of just one arbitrator. ?I think it?s misleading to characterize consumer arbitrations generally by looking at a single [arbitration] provider,? he said. ?I see companies shopping for the arbitration firms that will rule for them the most often.? (Let alone that every other analysis of arbitration says the opposite of that new "study".)

Also, as our friend Kia over at Tort Deform noted, the contact person on the press release announcing the study?s findings (Curt Mercadante) used to work at guess where?that?s right civil justice fans, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Institute for Legal Reform!  As Gomer Pyle would say, ?Surprise, surprise, surprise!?  Or to paraphrase Robert Duvall?s character in Apocalypse Now, I love the smell of propaganda in the morning!

Full post as published by ThePopTort on March 12, 2009 (boomark / email).