Consumer Finance Litigation

In American Express Co. v. Italian Colors Restaurant, ___ S. Ct. ___ (2013), the Court continued its recent trend of strictly enforcing the terms of arbitration agreements. In a 5-3 decision, penned by Justice Scalia, the Court held that a contractual waiver of class arbitration is enforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) even if the high cost of proving an individual claim in arbitration exceeds the plaintiff's potential recovery. The plaintiffs were merchants that had agreed with American Express to settle all disputes between the parties via arbitration ...