Forced Arbitration: How Corporations Use the Fine Print to Bully Americans

Abstract

Though few realize it, forced arbitration clauses are endemic in today’s marketplace — hidden in credit card agreements, bank accounts, corporate social media pages, even Starbucks gift cards. More than half a billion arbitration provisions infiltrate our everyday lives. Despite their prevalence, few consumers are aware of the forced arbitration clauses they are bound to, and fewer still realize they have been stripped of their constitutional rights.

Keywords: Access to Courts, Civil Justice, Arbitration, Class Actions, Consumer Rights, Corporate Accountability

JEL Classification: D18, D60, D63, D78, G21, G28, K13, K31, K41