The U.S. Supreme Court loves arbitration. Less than a year ago it decided American Express v. Italian Colors Restaurant. There, Italian Colors Restaurant filed a class action suit against American Express on behalf of merchants who accept the American Express card, despite an arbitration clause in the merchant agreement. The Supreme Court gave effect the arbitration clause, and further held that a class action cannot be handled through arbitration. These holdings left merchants with no effective remedy, as no single claim could be brought against American Express because costs would far exceed the amount in dispute.
So it appeared likely that large corporations would use the American Express decision to advance protecting their interests by mandating arbitration in their