The Demise of Class Actions Will Not Be Televised

Authors

Benjamin Sachs-Michaels, Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Abstract

As evidenced by two recent Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution articles, class action waivers in arbitration clauses are currently a hot topic in the field of conflict resolution. With increasing frequency, arbitrators and courts are presented with class action waivers in compulsory arbitration agreements prohibiting the aggregation of claims. This Note argues that some courts have reversed course in their treatment of class action waivers contained in arbitration clauses. There is a new movement to find class waivers, and the arbitration clauses that harbor them, unenforceable. This Note further argues that while plaintiffs uniformly oppose class action waivers, defendants widely oppose class arbitration, preferring instead to defend class actions in court. Finally, this Note contends that these recent decisions present a serious problem for arbitration as a forum because they represent a widening judicial recognition that arbitration clauses in adhesive consumer contracts are being used in an unjust manner.

Disciplines

Consumer Protection Law | Contracts | Courts | Dispute Resolution and Arbitration | Law

Recommended Citation

Benjamin Sachs-Michaels, The Demise of Class Actions Will Not Be Televised, 12 Cardozo J. Conflict Resol. 665 (2011).
Available at: https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/cjcr/vol12/iss2/16