Rep. Johnson, Sen. Blumenthal Re-Introduce Legislation to End Forced Arbitration & Restore Accountability for Consumers, Workers

WASHINGTON, D.C. —  On Monday, Congressman Hank Johnson (GA-04), ranking member of the Judiciary Subcommittee on Courts, Intellectual Property, Artificial Intelligence and the Internet, and U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), announced that they re-introduced the FAIR Act: The Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal Act, re-establishing Americans’ 7th Amendment right to seek justice and accountability through the court system. 

Rep. Johnson made the announcement during a virtual roundtable discussion on forced arbitration that included advocacy groups , and his bill has more than 50 cosponsors. Sen. Blumenthal introduced the Senate companion bill. 

WATCH THE VIRTUAL ROUNDTABLE HERE

The bill passed the House of Representatives during the 116th and 117th Congresses. 

The FAIR Act – H.R. 5350 – would eliminate forced arbitration clauses in employment, consumer, and civil rights cases. Instead of forcing arbitration, the FAIR Act, would allow consumers and workers to choose between arbitration and the Court system after a dispute occurs. 

“Forced arbitration is an underhanded maneuver that corporations use to trick consumers, workers and small businesses out of their right to go to court and seek damages from a jury of their peers,” said Rep. Johnson, who has been introducing arbitration reform legislation since 2007.  “You can't get a cell phone or credit card or even a job nowadays unless you sign away your rights because that's what every corporation requires. They force you into binding arbitration because it benefits them, and it's at your expense. If this sounds unfair, it is. Big businesses that already had all the power in the relationship between themselves and someone like you or me, stacked the deck so that they can avoid the only thing out there that could hold them accountable -- the United States justice system.” 

“Forced arbitration clauses restrict Americans’ access to justice by stripping consumers and workers of their right to go to court. Instead, they are forced into a rigged system where corporations can write the rules and everything can be done in secret. What is at stake today is basic fairness. Congress can show that it’s on the side of everyday Americans and not corporate wrongdoers by passing the FAIR Act,” said U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), the legislation’s lead Senate sponsor.

"From NFL coaches fighting racial discrimination to kids just trying to access a school lunch, forced arbitration limits our ability to identify corporate wrongdoing and routinely strips people of their fundamental rights," said Christine Chen Zinner, Director of Federal Research and Advocacy at Alliance for Justice. "The FAIR Act will level the playing field and restore access to the courts where people have a fair chance to seek justice when they are harmed."

BACKGROUND: Forced arbitration clauses restrict Americans’ access to justice by stripping consumers and workers of their right to go to court. Instead, consumers and workers are forced into an unfair arbitration system where corporations can write the rules; everything can be done in secret, without public rulings; discovery can be limited, making it hard for consumers to get the evidence they need to prove their case; and there’s no meaningful judicial review, so consumers and employees are often unable to appeal a decision even if the arbitrator gets it wrong. In 2015 investigative series, The New York Times documented the ills of forced arbitration clauses in consumer and employment contracts: Arbitration Everywhere, Stacking the Deck of Justice. 

COSPONSORS (56)

Rep. Barragan (CA-44); Rep. Bernhard (LA-02); Rep. Bonamici (OR-01); Rep. Brownley (CA-26); Rep. Casar (TX-35); Rep. Casten (IL-06); Rep. Castro (TX-20); Rep. Chu (CA-28); Rep. Cleaver (MO-05); Rep. Dean (PA-04); Rep. DelBene (WA-01); Rep. Deluzio (PA-17); Rep. Doggett (TX-37); Rep. Fletcher (TX-07); Rep. Foster (IL-11); Rep. Frankel (FL-22); Rep. Garcia (CA-42); Rep. Garcia (TX-29); Rep. García (IL-04); Rep. Golden (ME-02); Rep. Gottheimer (NJ-05); Rep. Huffman (CA-02); Rep. Jayapal (WA-07); Rep. Kelly (IL-02); Rep. Khanna (CA-17); Rep. Lee (PA-12); Rep. Lieu (CA-36); Rep. Magaziner (RI-02); Rep. McClellan (VA-04); Rep. McCollum (MN-04); Rep. McGarvey (KY-03); Rep. Morelle (NY-25); Rep. Mrvan (IN-01); Rep. Neguse (CO-02); Rep. Norton (DC); Rep. Ocasio-Cortez (NY-14); Rep. Omar (MN-05); Rep. Peters (CA-50); Rep. Pingree (ME-01); Rep. Pocan (WI-02); Rep. Pressley (MA-07); Rep. Quigley (IL-05); Rep. Ross (NC-02); Rep. Scanlon (PA-05); Rep. Sherman (CA32);Rep. Simon (CA-12); Rep. Smith (WA-09); Rep. Stanton (AZ-04); Rep. Swalwell (CA-14); Rep. Thanedar (MI-13); Rep. Tlaib (MI-12); Rep. Tonko (NY-20); Rep. Tran (CA-45); Rep. Williams (GA-05)

SUPPORTING ORGANIZATIONS: Alliance for Justice; American Association for Justice; Americans for Financial Reform; Center for Auto Safety, Center for Biological Diversity; Center for Economic Integrity, Center for Economic Justice; Center for Justice & Democracy; Center for LGBTQ Economic Advancement & Research (CLEAR); Center for Progressive Reform; Center for Responsible Lending; Committee to Support the Antitrust Laws; Consumer Action; Consumer Federation of America; Consumer Reports; Consumer Watchdog; Consumers for Auto Reliability and Safety; DC Consumer Rights Coalition; Earthjustice; Economic Policy Institute; Essential Information; Farmworker Association of Florida; Food & Water Watch; Impact Fund; Indiana Community Action Poverty Institute; Justice in Aging; Kansas Holistic Defenders; Long Term Care Community Coalition; Mobilization for Justice; National Association of Consumer Advocates; National Association of the Deaf; National Center for Law and Economic Justice; National Consumer Law Center (on behalf of its low-income clients), National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care; National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care; National Consumers League, National Disability Rights Network (NDRN); National Employment Law Project; National Employment Lawyers Association; National Institute for Workers' Rights; National Urban League, National Women's Law Center, NETWORK Lobby for Catholic Social Justice; Northwest Workers’ Justice Project,; Oregon Consumer League; Public Citizen; Public Good Law Center; Public Justice; Public Justice Center; Rise Economy (formerly California Reinvestment Coalition); South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center; Student Borrower Protection Center; Texas Appleseed; The Sikh Coalition; Tzedek DC; United Way of Central Texas, Center for Community Impact; Virginia Citizens Consumer Counsel.

WHAT THE GROUPS ARE SAYING

“The FAIR Act’s ban on forced arbitration clauses in the corporate fine-print is urgently needed to restore critical legal protections, which would ensure consumers, workers, and small businesses can seek to hold corporate bad actors accountable in court for the harm they cause.” said Christine Hines, legislative director at the National Association of Consumer Advocates. 

“The practical effect of forced arbitration is that corporations can break the law and harm consumers, workers, families, and small businesses without consequences. The FAIR Act would enable all of us to seek justice in court and deter corporations from breaking the law in the first place.” said Leah Nicholls, Director of the Access to Justice Project at Public Justice.

“Forced arbitration is a rigged system that stacks the deck against consumers, workers, and victims, while allowing corporations to defraud, discriminate, and hurt Americans. The FAIR Act would restore the rights of individuals to seek justice and public accountability when corporations break the law, and I thank Congressman Hank Johnson (D-GA) and Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-CT) for their steadfast leadership on this issue," said American Association for Justice (AAJ) CEO Linda Lipsen.

Read the bill HERE.

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