As brought up for discussion by Professor Peter Friedman at our Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation LinkedIn Group, the law firm of Milberg LLP has filed a class action lawsuit against the National Arbitration Forum (NAF). The Complaint alleges, among other things, that NAF falsely presented its arbitration services as neutral. (read more here) [Update: Click on the link for the text of the Complaint Magnone v. Accretive LLC, courtesy of Professor Ross Runkel’s LawMemo Arbitration Blog.] Related Posts: U.S. Congressional Hearing | “Mandatory Binding Arbitration – Is it Fair and Voluntary?” (Sept. 16) Videos of Congressional Hearing | Arbitration or Arbitrability?: the Misuse of Arbitration to Collect Consumer Debts (Sept. 7) Pending Legislation on U.S. Alternative Dispute Resolution: Update (Aug. 31) American Bar Association’s Resolutions on the Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009 (Aug. 26) Recent Developments in Arbitration of Consumer Disputes (Aug. 14) Testimony from the U.S. Congress Hearing on the Misuse of Arbitration to Collect Consumer Debts (July 24) The American Arbitration Association Confirms Today That It Supends Arbitration of Consumer Debt Collection (July 23) National Arbitration Forum Settles with Minnesota’s Attorney General (July 20) U.S. Congress Hearing on the Misuse of Arbitration to Collect Consumer Debts (July 20) National Arbitration Forum Sued by the Minnesota Attorney General (July 16) National Arbitration Forum’s Response to NPR Arbitration Story (June 17) Employment and Consumer Arbitration: NPR Article (June 10) Technorati Tags: arbitration, ADR, law, consumer arbitration, National Arbitration Forum

As reported by PointofLaw.com, the House Judiciary Committee Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law held a hearing on September 15th, titled “Mandatory Binding Arbitration – Is it Fair and Voluntary?“ Witnesses included: Rep. Henry C. “Hank” Johnson (D-GA), sponsor of H.R. 1020 (a.k.a. “Arbitration Fairness Act”). The Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009 would ban mandatory pre-dispute arbitration in employment, consumer, and franchise contracts. House version: H.R. 1020 and Status. Senate version: S. 931 and Status. (read the testimony here and press release here) Rep. Linda T. Sanchez (D-CA), sponsor of H.R. 1237 (a.k.a. “Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act”). The Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009 would render pre-dispute arbitration clauses in nursing home contracts unenforceable. House version: H.R. 1237 and Status. Senate version: S. 512 and Status. (read the testimony here and press release here) Alison Hirschel, National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care. (read the testimony here) Stuart T. Rossman, National Consumer Law Center. (read the testimony here) Stephen J. Ware, University of Kansas School of Law. (read the testimony here) Cliff Palefsky, National Employment Lawyers Association. (read the testimony here) Technorati Tags: arbitration, ADR, law, legislation, Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009, Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009

Peter S. Vogel, trial partner at Gardere Wynne Sewell LLP and contributor to this blog, wrote an interesting piece about the role that a special master plays in electronic evidence disputes. Mr. Vogel writes that a special master in e-discovery usually: conducts interviews of IT employees; reviews software; examines data; searches websites; holds hearings on various disputes; assists judges by reviewing motions for summary judgment; and has private meetings with judges. Mr. Vogel also discusses three cases in which he was appointed the special master. The cases relate to e-mail authorship, copyright infringement, and improper billing. Read the full article here. Technorati Tags: law, special master, Texas, e-discovery

On May 21, 2009 Disputing and the Loree Reinsurance and Arbitration Law Forum announced the formation of the LinkedIn Commercial and Industry Arbitration and Mediation Group (post available here), an open forum for the discussion of industry and commercial ADR. The group is co-managed by Philip J. Loree Jr., Karl Bayer, Don Philbin, Robert Bear, and Victoria VanBuren. We are pleased to share with you that the group has since grown to 292 members. Discussions have been lively, the group is internationally and professionally diverse, and group members have access to several ADR blogs, as well as articles posted by other group members. It is an excellent networking and learning opportunity for anyone interested in commercial and industry ADR. Membership in the group is recommended to those interested in keeping abreast of current events pertinent to arbitration (including consumer arbitration), tracking judicial and legislative developments relevant to arbitration law, learning more about the subject, or simply sharing information. We are proud to have as members a number of commercial and industry arbitrators, attorneys, industry people and arbitration professionals. Membership is also recommended if you are a mediator, a business person who utilizes mediation to resolve disputes, an attorney who represent clients in mediation or a person interested in learning about mediation or sharing information on the subject. The group is proud to have as members a number of accomplished mediators, including some well-known ADR bloggers. Not being a mediator myself, I have learned much about mediation simply through group participation. We welcome new members. The group is not a forum for, and does not permit, advertising or blatant self-promotion, so our members need not be concerned about being subject to sales pitches, and the like. If you are already a member of LinkedIn, please click