ADR News Updates - November 2009
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November 2009
There has been much more legislative activity affecting arbitration in Washington, DC this year than in Sacramento. I discussed in an earlier E Blast The Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009 and CDRC’s comments to the House and Judiciary Committees on the bills pending before sub-committees of those Committees. Staff members from the House Sub-Committee considering the House version recently spoke at the Annual Meeting of the College of Commercial Arbitrators. They indicated they are still in an early phase of the legislative process and invited additional comments or suggestions on the House bill. This week I wrote to the staff person advising the sponsor of the House bill reiterating CDRC’s willingness to assist in crafting language for an opt-in provision for consumers, employees and franchisees as part of our concern that an absolute ban on pre-dispute arbitration clauses would diminish access to justice for the very class sought to be protected by the legislation. The College of Commercial Arbitrators is preparing comments that relate solely to the impact that the legislation, as presently drafted, would have on commercial arbitration.
On another front, the House Financial Service Committee has approved HR 3126, which sets up a new Consumer Financial Protection Agency. Section 125 of the bill states that the agency "by regulation, may prohibit or impose conditions or limitations on the use of agreements between a covered person and a consumer that require the consumer to arbitrate any future dispute between the parties under this title or any enumerated consumer law if the agency finds that such prohibition, imposition of conditions, or limitations are in the public interest and for the protection of consumers." Assuming that this legislation is enacted with no modifications, the battle would then shift to any rulemaking proposed by the Consumer Financial Protection Agency. I would expect the CDRC would make comments at that time.
Let me use this occasion to remind those of you who have not yet renewed your membership to please do so. Next month I expect to be able to announce another exciting benefit for our members. Stay tuned.
Maurice Zilber, President
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November 2009
CDRC CONFERENCE REPORT AND
2010 DUES COLLECTION REMINDER!
Dear CDRC Member and Interested Parties:
For those members who were not able to attend our Annual Conference, I would like to give you a flavor of the very successful event as well as the results of the election of Directors and Officers.
The Conference was very well attended. Our having it on a Saturday was a shift from our usual Friday format, but I think we had more attendees from Southern California than usual because of the fact that it was on a weekend day. Whether we continue the Saturday custom is up to the incoming administration. By the way, save October 22 and 23, 2010 on your calendars -the 17th Annual Conference will be on one of those two dates in Los Angeles. We'll let you know which one early next year.
Paul Dubow, our immediate past president, provided an excellent update on the status of the Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009. It seems likely to pass in some form during this session of Congress and depending on the final wording could have a serious impact on all arbitrations, not just consumer arbitration. You can read the comments we sent to Congress on the CDRC website.
Donne Brownsey presented her usual informative and witty reactions to what has been going on in Sacramento. Since most of it was under the proverbial "Dome of Silence", I can't give you a summary here, although you can read her bi-monthly reports on the website as well.
Our keynote speaker was Assemblyperson Bill Monning who is the first genuine neutral to serve in the state legislature. He gave us insights into the world of a freshman legislator, and analysis of the current problems of state governance and possible solutions.
The afternoon panels on arbitration, mediation and collaborative law were all well done and well received, and the lovely wine and cheese reception gave attendees a chance to mingle and compare notes.
While I did thank our sponsors and the planners at the Conference, I want to also acknowledge them here. The contributions of the American Arbitration Association, JAMS and the American Institute of Mediation assured the financial success of the Conference for which we are extremely grateful. Our outgoing Board members, Dr. Urs Laeuchli and Gary Weiner did excellent work in arranging for our Conference to have a home at HastingsLawSchool and presenting a stimulating program for our members and others. Finally, our thanks to Grande Lum and his staff at HastingsLawSchool for their cooperation, participation and hospitality. We look forward to returning to Hastings in two years and many years thereafter.
At our Board meeting on the Friday before the Conference, officers for next year were elected. They are: Karen Smith, President; John Horn, President-Elect; Candace Matson, Treasurer and Mila Novakovic, Secretary. I will serve as Immediate Past President next year.
At the Conference, the results of the election for new Board Members were announced. They are: Richard Collier, Timothy Dayonot, Janet Martinez, Hon. Kevin Midlam (Ret.), Douglas Noll, David Pauker and Hon. Alex Williams (Ret.). In addition, Brohne Lawhorne, Candace Matson and Ron Rosenfeld were elected to a second term on the Board. As a group they bring extensive experience and a broad perspective to our work. We look forward to their participation for many years to come.
Also at our meeting, the Board authorized an additional benefit for members that we will announce when it is up and ready - hopefully by the end of the year.
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Just a reminder that it is time to pay your 2010 membership dues. As you known, the great bulk of our income (around $48,000) goes to lobbying efforts and our average dues contribution is $52,000. If you do the math, you can see we operate on a shoestring budget and if our membership declines, we will not be able to support a lobbyist, let alone our new administration, which came aboard in August. We will be out of business without your support and you will not have a representative in Sacramento or elsewhere. Our financial margins are so narrow that board members pay $250 annually for the privilege of serving and bear their own travel costs when attending board meetings or other functions on behalf of the organization in addition to their membership dues.
Your board is working on some exciting new marketing plans for our members in 2010 and in order to put those plans into action - we need your support.
Please renew your membership today.
The minimum contribution for professionals $150 and you can pay a higher amount if you so choose. You can join or renew online at http://www.cdrc.net/pg5.cfm or by sending your payment to CDRC at 1430 South Grand Avenue, # 256, Glendora, CA 91740.
If you have any questions about membership, please do not hesitate to give the CDRC office a call at 1-866-216-2372 or our administration directly at 626-974-5429.
Thank you again for your support this year and feel free to call me at 415-713-1914 or email me at mlzee@earthlink.net if you have any questions or comments.
Thanks in advance.
Sincerely,
Maurice L. Zilber
2009 CDRC President
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October 2009
For those members who were not able to attend our Annual Conference, I would like to give you a flavor of the very successful event as well as the results of the election of Directors and Officers.
The Conference was very well attended. Our having it on a Saturday was a shift from our usual Friday format, but I think we had more attendees from Southern California than usual because of the fact that it was on a weekend day. Whether we continue the Saturday custom is up to the incoming administration. By the way, save October 22 and 23, 2010 on your calendars –the 17th Annual Conference will be on one of those two dates in Los Angeles. We’ll let you know which one early next year.
Paul Dubow, our immediate past president, provided an excellent update on the status of the Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009. It seems likely to pass in some form during this session of Congress and depending on the final wording could have a serious impact on all arbitrations, not just consumer arbitration. You can read the comments we sent to Congress on the CDRC website.
Donne Brownsey presented her usual informative and witty reactions to what has been going on in Sacramento. Since most of it was under the proverbial “Dome of Silence”, I can’t give you a summary here, although you can read her bi-monthly reports on the website as well.
Our keynote speaker was Assemblyperson Bill Monning who is the first genuine neutral to serve in the state legislature. He gave us insights into the world of a freshman legislator, and analysis of the current problems of state governance and possible solutions.
The afternoon panels on arbitration, mediation and collaborative law were all well done and well received, and the lovely wine and cheese reception gave attendees a chance to mingle and compare notes.
While I did thank our sponsors and the planners at the Conference, I want to also acknowledge them here. The contributions of the American Arbitration Association, JAMS and the American Institute of Mediation assured the financial success of the Conference for which we are extremely grateful. Our outgoing Board members, Dr. Uhrs Lachli and Gary Weiner did excellent work in arranging for our Conference to have a home at HastingsLawSchool and presenting a stimulating program for our members and others. Finally, our thanks to Grande Lum and his staff at HastingsLawSchool for their cooperation, participation and hospitality. We look forward to returning to Hastings in two years and many years thereafter.
At our Board meeting on the Friday before the Conference, officers for next year were elected. They are: Karen Smith, President; John Horn, President-Elect; Candace Matson, Treasurer and Mila Novakovic, Secretary. I will serve as Immediate Past President next year.
At the Conference, the results of the election for new Board Members were announced. They are: Richard Collier, Timothy Dayonot, Janet Martinez, Hon. Kevin Midlam (Ret.), Douglas Noll, David Pauker and Hon. Alex Williams (Ret.). In addition, Brohne Lawhorne, Candace Matson and Ron Rosenfeld were elected to a second term on the Board. As a group they bring extensive experience and a broad perspective to our work. We look forward to their participation for many years to come.
Also at our meeting, the Board authorized an additional benefit for members that we will announce when it is up and ready – hopefully by the end of the year.
Maurice Zilber, President
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July 2009
CDRC Conditionally Supports the Arbitration Fairness Act
and
A New Member Benefit
The CDRC Board expressed its support for the Arbitration Fairness Act presently being considered in Congress provided that the final version adopts the provisions presently in the Senate version of the bill and some form of opt in/opt out provision is added. The Board also asked Congress to ban class action waivers in arbitrations and litigation. A copy of the letter sent to members of the House and Senate Judiciary Committees is attached.
CDRC has become an Affiliated Organization with the American Institute of Mediation (“AIM”), a recently formed independent organization for the training of mediators. CDRC members are entitled to 10% off all AIM courses and 10% off all books, materials, and other items in the AIM bookstore. Check out their website at
Finally, save the date of Saturday, October 17 when CDRC’s Annual Conference will be held at HastingsLawSchool in San Francisco. The program is shaping up to be very timely and provocative. We will have more details to share with you in the next month or so.
Maurice L. Zilber, President.
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March 2009
This year we are introducing a new section of our website - a monthly report from Donne Brownsey, our lobbyist, on doings in Sacramento. Donne's first report on the California State Budget is up on the site, and I'm sure you will find it interesting and informative. Please come back each month for her latest discussion.
Our Membership Committee has been actively looking at enhancements to our member benefits. I hope to be able to offer more details with my next e-blast.
Speaking of membership, you need not be a Board Member to serve on a Committee. I invite you to review the list of Committees on the website, and if you find one of interest, please contact me at the email address below; we would welcome your participation. Finally, I would encourage you to invite an ADR colleague to join CDRC-it is very easy to do on our website www.CDRC.net, and we need to increase our paying membership if we are going to be able to continue to do our excellent work on behalf of the profession in this state.
Maurice L. Zilber, President
Now that the Inauguration, the Super Bowl and the Oscars have come and gone and, most importantly, the California State Budget has passed, the California Legislature finally got around to filing bills for the coming Session. The CDRC Legislation Committee has been analyzing the ADR-related bills that have been filed so far, and we will have a report on CDRC's position on the bills affecting ADR next month.
Of greater concern to the national arbitration community are a series of bills introduced this year in Congress: Arbitration Fairness Act of 2009, H.R. 1020; Fairness in Nursing Home Arbitration Act of 2009, H.R. 1237; and Consumer Fairness Act of 2009, H.R. 991. These bills, if enacted, would invalidate any pre-dispute arbitration clause in employment, consumer, franchise or nursing home agreements. CDRC's Dispute Resolution Principles provide that arbitration should be voluntary, so unless a pre-dispute agreement is entered into voluntarily, the arbitration clause should not be binding. Thus, we would support the underlying purpose of this proposed legislation to the extent that it prohibits one-sided or compulsory arbitration agreements. Nevertheless, aspects of the proposed legislation are troublesome, and CDRC will be filing comments, along with many other Bar Committees and other organizations with our California Congressmen and Congresswomen as well as other relevant House Committee Members. Very troubling language in the 2007 version of the Arbitration Fairness Act, which, in effect, would have prevented all pre-dispute commercial arbitrations, does not yet appear in these bills, but we have not yet seen what may be introduced in the Senate.
