Today the Supreme Court just ruled that companies could essentially ban class-action lawsuits through contract clauses. Ian Millhiser explains:
Today, in a 5-4 opinion by Justice [Antonin] Scalia], the Supreme Court effectively eliminated all consumer class actions and left corporate America free to cheat every single one of their customers a few dollars at a time. Scalia’s opinion in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion permits corporations to refuse to do business with anyone who refuses to sign away their right to bring a class action lawsuit if the corporation breaks the law. After Concepcion, it is only a matter of time before nearly every credit card provider, cell phone company, mail-order business or even every potential employer requires anyone who wants to do business with them to first give up their right to file a class action.
Since many of these cases involve small amounts of money, the only way to hold a corporation accountable if it draws a big profit from hustling its customers is through a class-action lawsuit. Who wants to go through the trouble of arbitration for a few dollars?
While the issues involved aren’t the same, today’s ruling doesn’t exactly bode well for the court’s upcoming decision in Wal-Mart v. Dukes, in which the court will decide whether employees can band together in a class-action suit and sue their employer for discrimination, which may the only feasible way for employees of a company as large as Wal-Mart to hold them accountable. If you’re a corporation looking to erode the traditional legal tools through which individuals can seek restitution, it certainly feels like this is the moment, and the court, to do it with.
