About the Course
Introduction
This CLE webinar will provide an overview of the mass arbitration process and how it is being used to leverage up-front settlements with employers who have been subject to exorbitant case initiation fees before getting to the merits of the case. The panel will take an in-depth look at the American Arbitration Association's (AAA) revised rules and fee schedules and discuss whether the revisions have helped alleviate this issue since they have gone into effect and discuss what, if any, impact this has had on defense strategies. The panel will also address whether it is still in employers' best interests to include mandatory arbitration clauses in employment agreements and offer best practices for drafting these clauses.
Description
Class action waivers and mandatory arbitration clauses in employment agreements have resulted in a surge of mass arbitrations against employers that have proven most costly and may have counsel and their clients wondering whether mandatory arbitration clauses provide any real advantage.
In mass arbitration, plaintiffs' counsel may file thousands of similar individual claims that can be extremely costly to employers due to the exorbitant initiation fees that arbitration services providers charge per case before even getting to the merits of the case. In addition to case initiation fees, employers are also faced with the costs of litigating the same set of facts, potentially thousands of times, over the course of many years. As a result, even the threat of mass arbitration has been used as leverage for early settlement, and employers have done so even where claims may be frivolous or unlikely to succeed.
Accordingly, the AAA amended its Mass Arbitration Supplementary Rules and fee schedules, "to save time, reduce costs and foster constructive dialogue right from the start." But since the rules have gone into effect, has there been any real change in impact on employers and their defense strategies?
Listen as our expert panel provides an overview of the mass arbitration process and takes an in-depth look at the revised AAA rules and whether and how these have had any impact on defense strategies. The panel will also address weighing the risks and benefits of using mandatory arbitration clauses in employment agreements under the shadow of mass arbitration and how to draft these to best protect clients.
Presented By
Mr. Murray is Co-Chair of the firm’s Arbitration and Alternative Dispute Resolution Practice Group. He helps employers create, roll out, and enforce effective arbitration agreements and other ADR programs. Mr. Murray has particular experience with class/collective action waivers, was part of Ogletree’s team that defended such waivers in the Fifth Circuit’s landmark case, D.R. Horton, Inc. v. NLRB, and filed an amicus brief on behalf of major employer associations in the Supreme Court’s pivotal Epic Systems case. He assists employers in addressing a wide variety of employment issues. For purposes of maintaining good employee relations and practicing litigation avoidance, Mr. Murray advises companies on complying with ever-changing legal requirements, developing and updating effective policies and procedures, and handling day-to-day personnel matters. He devotes much of his practice to representing clients in litigation and administrative proceedings, from single-plaintiff cases to nationwide collective actions. Mr. Murray has significant experience in helping employers recover, and obtain compensation for, misappropriated trade secrets and confidential documents and data.
Ms. Riley has defended companies faced with significant complex litigation matters for more than two decades. She regularly defends companies facing class actions, collective actions, pattern or practice lawsuits, and other types of representative proceedings, ranging in size from dozens to tens of thousands of claims. Ms. Riley has represented clients facing bet-the-company cases in a wide range of complex civil litigation matters in federal and state courts across the country. She also provides counsel to employers seeking to navigate thorny issues, including investigations, compliance, and terminations. Ms. Riley is a regular speaker, author, and presenter regarding class action issues, legal developments, and challenges that companies may face in the future.
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This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.
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Date + Time
- event
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
- schedule
1:00 PM ET/10:00 AM PT
I. Introduction: the rise of mass arbitration
II. Overview of the mass arbitration process and its use to leverage early settlements
III. AAA's amended rules
A. Notable changes
B. Effect on defense strategy
IV. Mandatory arbitration clauses in employment agreements moving forward
A. Weighing the risks and benefits
B. Best practices for drafting
V. Key takeaways
The panel will review these and other important considerations:
- How has the threat of mass arbitration been used to leverage early settlements by employers?
- How did AAA revise its rules in response to this issue, and what, if any, impact have these revisions had on defense strategies?
- How should counsel advise their clients on whether to continue to include mandatory arbitration clauses in their employment agreements? What are best practices for drafting to mitigate risk, especially in the event of mass arbitration?
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