Consumer Arbitration of Statutory Claims: Has Pre-Dispute [Mandatory] Arbitration Outlived Its Welcome?

This essay explores whether pre-dispute arbitration, frequently called
mandatory arbitration, has outlived its welcome. The phrase “mandatory
arbitration” is misleading because it connotes arbitration that is compelled by law
regardless of consent. Pre-dispute arbitration, on the other hand, means a written
agreement, normally a term in a contract, to arbitrate future disputes. Under
international conventions, the Federal Arbitration Act, and state arbitration law,
courts will enforce pre-dispute arbitration agreements by a specific performance
decree if the dispute between the parties is arbitrable.