The issue of mandatory arbitration of employment and consumer disputes continues to be controversial. The principal bone of contention appears to be the requirement that the employee or consumer waive the right to participate in class or collective actions, so that his or her sole recourse is the pursuit of individual claims in arbitration.

On Friday, the Supreme Court of Texas agreed to consider whether the Fourth Court of Appeals in San Antonio committed error when it refused to vacate an arbitral award on common-law grounds in a mineral and property rights transfer dispute among family members.

Maureen Weston, Professor of Law at Pepperdine University School of Law and Director of the Entertainment, Media & Sports Dispute Resolution Project, has published “The Clash: Mandatory Arbitration and Administrative Agency and Representative Access,” Southern California Law Review, Vol. 89, 2015; Pepperdine University Legal Studies Research Paper No. 2015/12.

The arbitration process has the potential to eliminate many of the negative aspects of litigation including lengthy delays, inefficiencies, and confidentiality concerns.