WASHINGTON, D.C.— U.S. Chamber of Commerce Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness President and CEO David Hirschmann and U.S. Chamber Institute for Legal Reform President Lisa Rickard today issued the following statement regarding the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB) Denver field hearing and its proposed regulatory framework on arbitration:
“A CFPB ban on pre-dispute arbitration helps only one group: class action plaintiffs’ lawyers. Consumers will have fewer avenues and a longer process for resolving their disputes. The CFPB’s own study concludes consumers walk away from class actions with about 30 bucks while each trial lawyer walks away with a million.
“Consumers should also not be fooled by rhetoric claiming to ban only certain types of consumer arbitration. A ban on ‘pre-dispute’ arbitration is effectively a ban on all consumer arbitration. If a CFPB rule eliminates class action waivers, thus opening the litigation floodgates, then arbitration for most consumers will likely disappear.”
Since its inception in 2007, the Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness has led a bipartisan effort to modernize and strengthen the outmoded regulatory systems that have governed our capital markets. The CCMC is committed to working aggressively with the administration, Congress, and global leaders to implement reforms to strengthen the economy, restore investor confidence, and ensure well-functioning capital markets.
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The U.S. Chamber of Commerce is the world’s largest business federation representing the interests of more than 3 million businesses of all sizes, sectors, and regions, as well as state and local chambers and industry associations.