In a significant decision awaited by U.S. employers since January 2017, the Supreme Court upheld the use of class action waivers in arbitration agreements. Justice Gorsuch wrote the majority opinion, which was joined by Justices Roberts, Kennedy, Thomas, and Alito. Justice Ginsburg filed an extensive dissenting opinion joined by Justices Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan. The decision answers a question that has loomed large for employers: Can they include class action ... Keep Reading »
Arbitration Class Action Articles
The latest class action developments and trends in arbitration, including news, key cases, and strategies.
Supreme Court to Determine Whether An Arbitration Clause Must Explicitly Authorize Class-wide Arbitration
The Supreme Court recently granted certiorari in Lamps Plus Inc. v. Varela, to determine “[w]hether the Federal Arbitration Act forecloses a state-law interpretation of an arbitration agreement that would authorize class arbitration based solely on general language commonly used in arbitration agreements.” In other words, at issue is whether an arbitration clause must explicitly allow for class-wide arbitration, rather than solely on an individual basis, in order to find ... Keep Reading »
Fifth Circuit Dashes Delivery Driver’s Bid to Keep Wage Hour Claims Out of Arbitration
In Edwards v. DoorDash, Inc., No. 17-20082 (5th Cir. Apr. 25, 2018), the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals reaffirmed its position that arbitrability of claims, including whether class or collective claims must be arbitrated individually, is a threshold question that must be determined by the court prior to deciding certification motions. In Edwards, a driver asserted claims against a food-delivery service under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), asserting that he was ... Keep Reading »
Ninth Circuit Snubs Stolt-Nielsen, Holds Generic Employee Arbitration Agreement Permits Class-wide Arbitration
After an employer allegedly released personally identifiable information of its employees as the result of a phishing scam, plaintiff employee filed a putative class action lawsuit, alleging claims including negligence, breach of contract, invasion of privacy, and other claims. The employer moved to compel bilateral arbitration pursuant to the arbitration agreement plaintiff signed in connection with his employment. The district court found that the arbitration agreement ... Keep Reading »
No Treat for CFPB: Trump, Congress Override Rule on Class Action Waivers
On November 1, President Trump signed legislation disapproving a CFPB rule designed to prohibit class action waivers in certain consumer financial services contracts. In so doing, Trump rejected a last minute personal appeal from Obama-appointed CFPB head Richard Cordray to save the rule. The legislation had been awaiting the President’s signature since October 24, when Vice President Mike Pence cast the tie-breaking vote on a Senate-approved resolution under the ... Keep Reading »
Eleventh Circuit Doesn’t Waffle on Enforceability of Arbitration Agreement
The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeal found that an arbitration agreement entered into by a putative class representative and his eventual employer was enforceable even though the agreement was signed after the plaintiff filed his class action suit. The court found that the arbitration agreement included a valid delegation provision that evidenced the parties' intent to arbitrate all gateway issues of arbitrability. Accordingly, the court vacated the district court's ... Keep Reading »
Future of CFPB’s Arbitration Rule Unknown as Republicans Eye Congressional Review Act
On June 10, 2017, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) published a final rule attacking the use of class action waivers in arbitration clauses in certain consumer contracts. The new rule prohibits covered providers of consumer financial products or services, such as credit cards and bank accounts, from using arbitration clauses in consumer contracts to require consumers to resolve their disputes individually, rather than on a classwide basis. Specifically, ... Keep Reading »
Circuit Court Gives Red Light to TruGreen’s Motion to Compel Arbitration
The Sixth Circuit recently reversed a decision by the District Court for the Western District of Tennessee ordering arbitration in a putative class action lawsuit. Plaintiff brought a lawsuit against her lawn care services provider for alleged violations of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act when she received telemarketing calls from the company after terminating the parties’ contract and registering her number with the National Do-Not-Call Registry. She also sought ... Keep Reading »
SCOTUS to Determine Enforceability of Class Action Waivers in Employment Contract Arbitration Clauses
Today the United States Supreme Court granted and consolidated three petitions for certiorari related to the validity of class action waiver clauses in employer/employee arbitration agreements. The Court has consolidated the petitions in Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis (No. 16-285), Ernst & Young v. Morris (No. 16-300), and NLRB v. Murphy Oil USA, Inc. (No. 16-307). Classified previously blogged about the Ninth Circuit’s decision finding Ernst & Young’s class ... Keep Reading »
Ninth Circuit Denies Rehearing En Banc, Requires Ex-Uber Drivers to Arbitrate Claims Individually
The Ninth Circuit denied rehearing en banc of its September order holding that the district court erred in deciding whether two drivers who sued Uber Technologies, Inc. (“Uber”) on behalf of themselves and a putative class over the use of background checks must arbitrate their claims individually. The consolidated cases concerned both 2013 and 2014 versions of agreements Uber drivers were required to sign. The agreements included mandatory arbitration clauses, and class ... Keep Reading »