Texas Senate Committee on Jurisprudence

Texas Senate Committee on Jurisprudence

Study arbitration statutes and the role of the American Arbitration Association  Specifically, the Committee shall make recommendations to improve and ensure the efficiency, effectiveness, and fairness of arbitrators and arbitrations.

1. The Legislature should enact legislation requiring any business that includes a mandatory pre-dispute arbitration clause in their contracts to provide their consumers with certain upfront information. The information provided to the consumer shall specify which rights are being waived, who will arbitrate the dispute, who will cover the costs of arbitration, whether rules of discovery will be followed, what laws are applicable, what information will be public, and what recourse is available after an award is issued.

 2. The Legislature should enact legislation to require the State Bar of Texas to produce an informational pamphlet that will be distributed to businesses that require consumers to sign binding arbitration agreements.

 3. The Legislature should enact legislation regarding reporting requirements for arbitrators participating in business/consumer arbitrations. These requirements should outline the type of information to be reported and to whom it should be submitted. At a minimum, arbitrators in cases involving a business/consumer dispute shall be required to report the nature of the dispute and the final decision issued.

4. If reporting requirements are adopted, the Legislature should enact legislation requiring any business that includes a mandatory predispute arbitration clause in their contracts to inform its consumers of the availability and location of the reported information.