The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau yesterday finalized a sweeping new rule banning arbitration agreements that prevent class actions against banks and other financial institutions, the Legal Times reported. "Arbitration clauses in contracts for products like bank accounts and credit cards make it nearly impossible for people to take companies to court when things go wrong," said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. "These clauses allow companies to avoid accountability by blocking group lawsuits and forcing people to go it alone or give up. Our new rule will stop companies from sidestepping the courts and ensure that people who are harmed together can take action together." The move comes more than a year after the CFPB proposed the rule for arbitration agreements, calling such terms “contract gotchas” that allow the financial industry to sidestep the legal system. In taking the final step to push forward with the rule, the CFPB crossed off a bucket-list item for Cordray as he enters the final year of his five-year term and mulls a run for governor in his home state of Ohio. The rule will take effect 60 days after it is published in the Federal Register and apply to contracts entered into more than 180 days after that date.
