A handful of House Democrats took to the floor of Congress yesterday to call for an overhaul of arbitration, a private justice system for resolving disputes that is often slanted against consumers, the New York Times reported today. Beginning the unusual session was Rep. Hank Johnson of Georgia, a ranking member of the House Judiciary Committee. He implored Congress to strictly curtail the use of mandatory arbitration, in which judges and juries are supplanted by arbitrators who often consider the companies their clients. Joined by lawmakers from across the country, Johnson urged the passage of a bill he introduced this week that would prevent civil rights cases, like employment discrimination disputes, and other critical lawsuits from being pushed into arbitration. The impact of arbitration clauses, he noted, is especially devastating for women trying to fight gender discrimination in the workplace. “Buried in the fine print of everything from consumer contracts and employee handbooks to nursing home agreements, forced arbitration clauses insulate corporations from accountability by eliminating access to the courts for untold consumers and workers,” Johnson said.
