Mandatory Arbitration May Get Shelved
Reprinted from injuryboard.com
Posted by Beth Janicek
Wednesday, November 19, 2008 5:30 PM EST
Mandatory Arbitration Clause’s in my opinion bars your right to justice.
Binding Mandatory Arbitration (BMA) as defined by the Give Me Back My Rights Coalition is when a corporation includes a BMA requirement in its contracts; it means your dispute must be decided by a private legal system. Because BMA clauses are “binding,” you must abide by the decision and have no right to appeal.
Next year with the Democratic Party controlling both Congress and White House, Michael LeRoy a University of Illinois labor law expert predicts a bill sponsored by Democrats will be approved early next year excluding companies from imposing arbitration.
“The bottom line is you shouldn’t be forced into arbitration,” LeRoy said. “It doesn’t seem like a hallmark of a democratic society to say that as a condition of an important economic relationship such as employment that you must forego a constitutional right.”
LeRoy’s research shows that arbitration is flawed. One study found that state appellate courts confirmed 86.7% of employers win compared to 56.4% where arbitrators sided with employees in job-related disputes.
Additionally, companies alone select the arbitration service and usually are dependent on them for repeat business. The amount of evidence presented is usually limited and if they lose there is no right to appeal. If they refuse to participate in arbitration the clauses often state they automatically lose without any further recourse.
National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) defends the rights of consumers and advances economic justice. They oppose binding mandatory arbitration, class action bans, and other devices that deny consumers access to the justice system.
NCLC’s model state law would be:
1. Limit conflicts of interest involving arbitrators;
2. Prohibit many secrecy provisions governing the scope, magnitude and details of arbitration awards;
3. Allow consumers with small claims to seek relief collectively;
4. Require clear, up-front disclosure of potential arbitration costs and protect indigent consumers from excessive costs and fees; and
5. Preserve the right to judicial review in many cases involving insurance contracts, a particularly troubling area when exclusively governed by mandatory arbitration.
Under the proposed Arbitration Fairness Act, sponsored by Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis., and Rep. Hank Johnson, D-Ga. arbitration would remain a voluntary option to settle disputes, rather than mandatory.
Find this article at:
http://sanantonio.injuryboard.com/miscellaneous/mandatory-arbitration-may-get-shelved.aspx?googleid=251846
(c) 2008 InjuryBoard.com
Aebitration Atrocity alive and wekl in Texas. Until you have been forced through this vile process you have no real understanding of it’s injustice. Where the greed and corruption play, deep in the heart of Texas. Jordan Fogal Please google my name for my testimony to the Congressional Committee on the effects of arbitration on the consumer.
Once upon a time, in the land of pay and play, a wicked story began. It did not commence with a secret or clandestine meeting. There was no cloak and dagger stuff, like in a game of CLUE. There were no whispers of a deep throat. Nevertheless, this horrible story is repeated all over Texas. Misdeeds are committed without shame. They are cruel, open, arrogant, and ongoing. Peoples’ lives are destroyed as if they are inconsequential. Their numbers grow and are reported on a daily basis like the body bag count from a war.
One would assume that this state would have learned something from its history and not allow it to keep repeating itself. Past events include the 1954, $100 million, Veterans’ Land Board Scandal that was entangled in attempted murder, bribery, and political intrigue. This debacle involved none-other-than the governor, the attorney general, senators, and representatives; there were over 250 indictments handed down. How can things be allowed to get this out of control? Who says they don’t do it bigger in Texas? Have we so soon forgotten Enron? The ill-effects of Texas greed and corrupt politics are not so easily forgotten by those whose lives are ruined. And now, once again, this same sort of pond-scum is allowed to take control. Do all of this state’s mistakes have to reach Texas-size portions to be addressed?
These moneychangers are lead stories in magazines, written about in the Newspapers, and some make the 6 o’clock news. Then there is silence and nothing more. It is as if everyone develops amnesia, right after the information is disseminated. It is as if no one can acknowledge what is right-in-front of his or her eyes. The culprits and henchmen continue: as if no one sees anything is wrong, and God is in his heaven, and all is right with the world.
Sitting here, reading Texas Monthly Magazine, I am stunned. The article is titled, Bob Perry Needs a Hug. It is a powerful piece on the housing crisis, political power, intimidation, and injustice. It is all spelled out clearly; and it is written simply so, no matter what your level of education, you cannot miss the point. The story is actually a postscript to the November 2005 issue, Hurt? Injured? Need a Lawyer? Too Bad!, by Mimi Swartz. No one got sued because these articles told the truth. It is in black and white for anyone to read; and no one seems outraged, or even ashamed. Worst of all, it is ongoing; and no one is even stopped or punished. It is just dually noted in the text.
In another venue, is the new book, Blocking the Courthouse Door, by Stephanie Mencimer, Chapter Three; Mess with Texas: George W. Bush and the Texas Tort Moguls. It reads like chapter one from the starship, Enterprise … but it is all true! It is an eye-popping look at the people in power, who spun tort reform like cotton candy and hand fed it to us. This expos is an in-depth assessment of the incredulous and ongoing assault on the American consumer. Indeed, this is an assault that began right here in the great state of Texas. Is this state now the breeding ground for infamy? ( Infamy: evil reputation brought about by something grossly criminal, shocking, or brutal 2: an extreme and publicly known criminal or evil act 3: the state of being infamous) How well defined must these actions be?
Government agencies are bought and paid for, and the owner’s name is mentioned as off-handedly as if it were in the society page. The same names appear that are found in the magazines and the newspapers, and these people are allowed to continue to stomp down any fear of reprisals with their checkbooks? Have we, the people, just given up? If we no longer think we matter then we don’t.
It is all so absurd; it makes me think it is a bad dream or has to be make-believe. It brings to mind a fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson called “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. Remember it? The emperor is narcissistic, powerful, and vain. He struts around in new clothes to gain the admiration of his subjects. His only passion is his attire. He is so bad that he attracts swindlers to his court, and they play on his vanity. They sell him on the idea that they, for a price, can weave cloth so magnificent and elaborate… that it has special power and is completely invisible to everyone who is stupid or not fit for his post. The emperor, even-though he cannot see this material, cannot admit it because he would be, in essence, admitting he is stupid and unfit for his post. So he sends for his ‘yes men’. They, fearing reprisal, tell him what he wants to hear. They assure him they see the fabric, and it is as magnificent as befits a man of his station. He somehow has convinced himself that their approval of his preening, condones his ridiculous behavior.
His aids suggest that he should have new clothes made from this splendid material for the great procession that was the following day. Throughout the night, the swindlers made motions of looming and weaving, cutting and sewing… nothing. All the while, attesting to the king that it was the most exquisite outfit ever to be worn. There was great excitement in the kingdom as every one had heard of the emperor’s unbelievable threads. The rascal swindlers lifted up their arms to the emperor as if they were holding something. They proceeded with their scheme and asked the king to remove all his clothes so they could help him on with the new ones. They gave him the make-believe trousers and mantle. They remarked that the fabric was so light, it was as if he were wearing nothing, but remarked that – was the beauty of it.
All of his ministers cried out in unison, “Magnificent.” The emperor looked at himself side to side in the mirror as if to observe the clothes that were not there. No one dared tell him the truth, as they would have declared themselves stupid and unfit for their posts. A canopy was held above him as he strolled out to greet his admiring public. They oohed and aahed along the route as he waved and smiled, confident of his importance. But all at once, a hushed little voice shockingly spoke up from the crowd. A small child gasped, “But he is not wearing any clothes!” People began to whisper to one another what the child had said, ’til everyone was saying, “But he isn’t wearing any clothes.” The emperor himself had the uncomfortable feeling that what they were saying might be true, but he had to go through with the procession. So, he drew himself up and walked with his head higher than before; and the courtiers held onto the train that wasn’t there.
The moral of the story … there are a lot of naked people strutting around in Texas, desperately in need of a child’s honesty.
There is a real sickness in today’s society when we have to search for that small child’s voice in the masses to shed light on the horrendous, disgraceful truth, and finally get some kind of movement started. – Something has to done about defective, atrocious, uninhabitable housing; and we need to stop the homebuilders who shamefully erect them, ignore new homeowners’ complaints, change the company name, and then go right on building.
Something has to be done NOW to protect consumers. Consumers are the very fabric of the American dream. We need to halt the resulting wave of decimation throughout our nation’s economy. Something has to be done about reversing “Tort Reform” so the system is fair again. ”
By Jordan Fogal
Once upon a time, in the land of pay and play, a wicked story began. It did not commence with a secret or clandestine meeting. There was no cloak and dagger stuff, like in a game of CLUE. There were no whispers of a deep throat. Nevertheless, this horrible story is repeated all over Texas. Misdeeds are committed without shame. They are cruel, open, arrogant, and ongoing. Peoples’ lives are destroyed as if they are inconsequential. Their numbers grow and are reported on a daily basis like the body bag count from a war.
One would assume that this state would have learned something from its history and not allow it to keep repeating itself. Past events include the 1954, $100 million, Veterans’ Land Board Scandal that was entangled in attempted murder, bribery, and political intrigue. This debacle involved none-other-than the governor, the attorney general, senators, and representatives; there were over 250 indictments handed down. How can things be allowed to get this out of control? Who says they don’t do it bigger in Texas? Have we so soon forgotten Enron? The ill-effects of Texas greed and corrupt politics are not so easily forgotten by those whose lives are ruined. And now, once again, this same sort of pond-scum is allowed to take control. Do all of this state’s mistakes have to reach Texas-size portions to be addressed?
These moneychangers are lead stories in magazines, written about in the Newspapers, and some make the 6 o’clock news. Then there is silence and nothing more. It is as if everyone develops amnesia, right after the information is disseminated. It is as if no one can acknowledge what is right-in-front of his or her eyes. The culprits and henchmen continue: as if no one sees anything is wrong, and God is in his heaven, and all is right with the world.
Sitting here, reading Texas Monthly Magazine, I am stunned. The article is titled, Bob Perry Needs a Hug. It is a powerful piece on the housing crisis, political power, intimidation, and injustice. It is all spelled out clearly; and it is written simply so, no matter what your level of education, you cannot miss the point. The story is actually a postscript to the November 2005 issue, Hurt? Injured? Need a Lawyer? Too Bad!, by Mimi Swartz. No one got sued because these articles told the truth. It is in black and white for anyone to read; and no one seems outraged, or even ashamed. Worst of all, it is ongoing; and no one is even stopped or punished. It is just dually noted in the text.
In another venue, is the new book, Blocking the Courthouse Door, by Stephanie Mencimer, Chapter Three; Mess with Texas: George W. Bush and the Texas Tort Moguls. It reads like chapter one from the starship, Enterprise … but it is all true! It is an eye-popping look at the people in power, who spun tort reform like cotton candy and hand fed it to us. This expos is an in-depth assessment of the incredulous and ongoing assault on the American consumer. Indeed, this is an assault that began right here in the great state of Texas. Is this state now the breeding ground for infamy? ( Infamy: evil reputation brought about by something grossly criminal, shocking, or brutal 2: an extreme and publicly known criminal or evil act 3: the state of being infamous) How well defined must these actions be?
Government agencies are bought and paid for, and the owner’s name is mentioned as off-handedly as if it were in the society page. The same names appear that are found in the magazines and the newspapers, and these people are allowed to continue to stomp down any fear of reprisals with their checkbooks? Have we, the people, just given up? If we no longer think we matter then we don’t.
It is all so absurd; it makes me think it is a bad dream or has to be make-believe. It brings to mind a fairy tale by Hans Christian Anderson called “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. Remember it? The emperor is narcissistic, powerful, and vain. He struts around in new clothes to gain the admiration of his subjects. His only passion is his attire. He is so bad that he attracts swindlers to his court, and they play on his vanity. They sell him on the idea that they, for a price, can weave cloth so magnificent and elaborate… that it has special power and is completely invisible to everyone who is stupid or not fit for his post. The emperor, even-though he cannot see this material, cannot admit it because he would be, in essence, admitting he is stupid and unfit for his post. So he sends for his ‘yes men’. They, fearing reprisal, tell him what he wants to hear. They assure him they see the fabric, and it is as magnificent as befits a man of his station. He somehow has convinced himself that their approval of his preening, condones his ridiculous behavior.
His aids suggest that he should have new clothes made from this splendid material for the great procession that was the following day. Throughout the night, the swindlers made motions of looming and weaving, cutting and sewing… nothing. All the while, attesting to the king that it was the most exquisite outfit ever to be worn. There was great excitement in the kingdom as every one had heard of the emperor’s unbelievable threads. The rascal swindlers lifted up their arms to the emperor as if they were holding something. They proceeded with their scheme and asked the king to remove all his clothes so they could help him on with the new ones. They gave him the make-believe trousers and mantle. They remarked that the fabric was so light, it was as if he were wearing nothing, but remarked that – was the beauty of it.
All of his ministers cried out in unison, “Magnificent.” The emperor looked at himself side to side in the mirror as if to observe the clothes that were not there. No one dared tell him the truth, as they would have declared themselves stupid and unfit for their posts. A canopy was held above him as he strolled out to greet his admiring public. They oohed and aahed along the route as he waved and smiled, confident of his importance. But all at once, a hushed little voice shockingly spoke up from the crowd. A small child gasped, “But he is not wearing any clothes!” People began to whisper to one another what the child had said, ’til everyone was saying, “But he isn’t wearing any clothes.” The emperor himself had the uncomfortable feeling that what they were saying might be true, but he had to go through with the procession. So, he drew himself up and walked with his head higher than before; and the courtiers held onto the train that wasn’t there.
The moral of the story … there are a lot of naked people strutting around in Texas, desperately in need of a child’s honesty.
There is a real sickness in today’s society when we have to search for that small child’s voice in the masses to shed light on the horrendous, disgraceful truth, and finally get some kind of movement started. – Something has to done about defective, atrocious, uninhabitable housing; and we need to stop the homebuilders who shamefully erect them, ignore new homeowners’ complaints, change the company name, and then go right on building.
Something has to be done NOW to protect consumers. Consumers are the very fabric of the American dream. We need to halt the resulting wave of decimation throughout our nation’s economy. Something has to be done about reversing “Tort Reform” so the system is fair again. “