Originally from Alternatives to the High Cost of Litigation

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In recent times, much has been made in U.S. arbitration law of the Supreme Court’s effective prohibition of class actions in the face of arbitration clauses that do not provide for this type of proceeding.

In AT&T Mobility LLC v. Concepcion, 563 U. S. 333 (2011) (available at http://bit.ly/2VcI4mi), the Court ruled that the Federal Arbitration Act pre-empted the state law conclusion that a class action waiver in an arbitration clause could render the whole agreement invalid.

In Stolt‐Nielsen, S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int’l Corp., 559 U.S. 662 (2010) (available at http://bit.ly/2DOTTsX), the majority found an arbitrator’s conclusion in favor of a class action arbitration to be an excess of jurisdiction when it went against the clear words of the arbitration clause.