KU News Release

KU law professor to testify before U.S. House subcommittee

Christopher R. Drahozal

LAWRENCE — A University of Kansas School of Law professor will testify before a U.S. House subcommittee studying whether arbitration clauses in credit card contracts unfairly prevent customers from suing companies in court.

Christopher R. Drahozal, the John M. Rounds Distinguished Professor of Law, will present testimony Tuesday, May 5, at a hearing before the House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Commercial and Administrative Law on the “Federal Arbitration Act: Is the Credit Card Industry Using the Act to Slam Shut the Courthouse Door?”

Drahozal is chair of the Searle Civil Justice Institute’s Consumer Arbitration Task Force, which released a report in March detailing its study of consumer arbitrations administered by the American Arbitration Association. The use of arbitration clauses in credit cardholder agreements is widespread, and the practice of resolving credit card disputes through arbitration has been criticized as favoring businesses over consumers.

Arbitration, an alternative to litigation, involves submitting a dispute to one or more impartial persons for a final and binding decision. The Searle study found that measures to protect consumers’ rights are routinely enforced in American Arbitration Association consumer arbitrations and that outcomes are not biased in favor of businesses that arbitrate repeatedly.

Drahozal’s scholarly writing focuses on the law and economics of dispute resolution, particularly arbitration. He is the author of multiple books and numerous articles on commercial arbitration, and has taught and given presentations on the subject in Europe and the United States.

The hearing will take place at 10 a.m. May 5 in 2141 Rayburn House Office Building in Washington, D.C.

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