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Supreme Court Hears Debate on Class Action Ban in Arbitration Contracts

U.S. Supreme Court justices engaged with counsel in a spirited debate over whether a holding that an arbitration agreement that contains a class action waiver is unconscionable and unenforceable under state law is preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA).

The question presented in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion (No. 09-893, cert. granted 5/24/2010) is “whether the Federal Arbitration Act preempts States from conditioning the enforcement of an arbitration agreement on the availability of particular procedures – here, class-wide arbitration – when those procedures are not necessary to ensure that the parties to the arbitration agreement are able to vindicate their claims.”

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