Mass Arbitration – From Advantage to Adversity?

Litigation attorney William Farley was mentioned in a Commercial Dispute Resolution (CDR) Magazine article about the increasing use of mass arbitration and its impact on companies. Mr. Farley highlighted the key difference between mass arbitration and class action litigation, noting that in mass arbitration, each claim is filed individually, resulting in fees being assessed for each case. This approach allows claimant firms to pressure companies into settlements by filing hundreds or thousands of nearly identical claims simultaneously, even in cases with questionable merits. The article also discussed the introduction of new Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules (MASRs) by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) and the International Centre for Dispute Resolution (ICDR) to address the challenges posed by mass arbitrations and curb potential abuse of arbitral fee schedules. Mr. Farley explained why, despite the uptick, mass arbitration may not always serve the best interests of individual consumers.

"I don't think mass arbitration really serves the consumer; the benefits of arbitration historically are that an individual consumer can get a quick and fair resolution for any dispute they have with a company. But the mass arbitration trend tends to remove that individuality and make it almost tougher for the individual to have their claim resolved in a quick fashion," he said.

READ: Mass Arbitration – From Advantage to Adversity? (Subscription required)