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Consumer Advocates Take On Forced Arbitration

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Thursday, November 5, 2015   

CORAL GABLES, Fla. – On the heels of a New York Times investigation, consumer advocates are speaking out about the corporate practice of putting so-called forced arbitration clauses into contracts.

The clauses say if wrongdoing is alleged, people have to go to mediation rather than to court.

Miami-based attorney Julie Kane, president-elect of the American Association for Justice, says people find them everywhere these days.

"Credit card applications, cell phone contracts, employee handbooks, nursing home admissions forms, medical office forms,” she points out. “And they consent to forced arbitration without even knowing they're doing it. "

Legislation has been introduced in both the U.S. House and Senate to ban mandatory arbitration clauses in some contracts.

Supporters of mandatory arbitration say it cuts down on frivolous lawsuits.

U.S. Sen. Al Franken of Minnesota is the sponsor of the Senate bill, which he says would stop corporate interests from taking advantage of consumers, many of whom don't realize they've signed away their rights.

"These guys are bad guys,” Franken asserts. “And I have an Arbitration Fairness Act that I've reintroduced, and it's about the right of people to go to court. It's in the Constitution. It's in two amendments in the Bill of Rights.”

Kane says she hopes Floridians will make their voices heard on the issue, because right now, she believes the practice has stacked the deck against them when it comes to cases of fraud or wrongdoing.

"You run the risk if you lose of being assessed the fees and costs and expert expenses of the other side,” she states. “It is an absolutely rigged forum set up to allow corporations to take advantage of consumers."

The New York Times exposé found that the majority of federal cases that went to arbitration from 2010 to 2014 favored the companies.





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