On March 26, the American Bankers Association and the Consumer Bankers Association, represented by Ballard Spahr, filed an amicus brief in support of petitions for certiorari asking the Supreme Court to review the Ninth Circuit’s rulings in the Blair v. Rent-A-Center appeals that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) does not preempt California’s McGill rule. The amicus brief argues that review should be granted to preserve consumer-friendly procedures for resolving disputes and to ensure that courts uniformly apply the FAA as interpreted by the Court in decisions such as Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, AT&T Mobility, LLC v. Concepcion and Lamps Plus, Inc. v. Varela.

The petitions for certiorari, filed on February 27, argue that the McGill rule is inconsistent with fundamental precepts of the FAA and is outside the boundaries of the FAA’s savings clause. It is possible that the Court will rule on the petitions before recessing at the end of June.

We will keep you updated.