Correcting the record on the CFPB’s arbitration rule

By Eric Goldberg – OCT 16, 2017

On Nov. 1, 2017, the President signed a joint resolution passed by Congress disapproving the Arbitration Agreements Rule under the Congressional Review Act (CRA). Pursuant to the joint resolution, the Arbitration Agreements Rule has no force or effect. On Nov. 22, 2017, the Bureau published a notice removing the Arbitration Agreements Rule from the Code of Federal Regulations.

The materials relating to the Arbitration Agreements Rule on the Bureau’s website are for reference only.

View the Bureau's notice removing the Arbitration Agreements Rule from the Code of Federal Regulations

This summer, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau issued a rule that prevents financial companies from using arbitration clauses to deny groups of consumers the ability to pursue their legal rights in court. We put this rule in place after conducting a comprehensive study that found that arbitration clauses were effectively blocking billions of dollars of relief for millions of harmed consumers. Still, some continue to question the impact of our rule on consumers and financial institutions. CFPB Director Richard Cordray recently addressed these criticisms in a column, published in The Hill on October 16. For more information, see Director Cordray’s letter responding to an inquiry from U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown (including a memorandum from the Bureau’s Office of Research) and Director Cordray’s August op-ed in the New York Times.

Read the Bureau’s review of an analysis by Department of the Treasury of the Arbitration Rule .