“Class-action lawsuits filed in the U.S. District Court of Oregon accuse two third-party administrators [Sedgwick, and Crawford & Co.] of improperly applying more than $10 million in discounts from preferred provider organization contracts when paying workers’ compensation medical bills since 2006.” Continue reading “WorkCompCentral, “Class-Action Suit Challenges Administrators PPO Discounts””
The Second Circuit reaffirmed its decision in In re American Express Merchants’ Litigation, 634 F.3d 187 (2d Cir. 2011) (Amex II) that the class action waiver provision contained in the contracts between American Express and merchants is unenforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), because enforcement of the clause would as a practical matter preclude any action seeking to vindicate the statutory rights asserted by the plaintiffs. The Second Circuit ruled that the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent opinion in AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion did not alter its analysis. In re American Express Merchants’ Litigation (Amex III) (2d Cir. Feb. 1, 2012).
The Second Circuit has now issued three opinions on this question, necessitated by recent Supreme Court pronouncements. In Amex I, 554 F.3d 300 (2d Cir. 2009), the court considered the enforcement of a mandatory arbitration clause in a commercial contract that also contained a class action waiver and determined that it was unenforceable. The court reasoned that the high costs of litigating an antitrust claim ruled out individual claims and meant that without a class action, plaintiffs would have no remedy. Continue reading “Second Circuit rejects class action waiver in American Express case”
