Consumer Law

AAA drops consumer debt arbitrations, too!

By Sam Glover

Following on the heels of National Arbitration Forum’s agreement to stop handling consumer debt arbitrations, AAA said they will also bow out “until new guidelines are established” (possibly an allusion to the industry’s call for minimum standards in lieu of banning mandatory, pre-dispute, binding arbitration). Now that the two biggest players in consumer debt arbitration are out of the picture, it very well may be the case that most mandatory arbitration clauses in consumer contracts are effectively unenforceable, since many will have specified either NAF or AAA as the forum of choice.

With NAF and AAA out of the way, the only nationwide arbitration forum left is JAMS. Let’s hope they follow suit.

Credit-Card Disputes Tossed Into Disarray | WSJ (via CL&P)

Full post as published by Caveat Emptor on July 22, 2009 (boomark / email).