Scott, et al. v. Cingular Wireless LLC

Case Updates

The Washington Supreme Court ruled that arbitration provisions barring classwide resolution of claims are “unconscionable” and against Washington public policy.

NCLC urged the Washington Supreme Court to enforce an arbitration provision that bars classwide resolution of claims brought by customers against a the defendant cell phone company. In this case, a putative class of cell phone customers sued a cell phone company under Washington’s consumer protection law, claiming that the company overcharged them for certain services. The plaintiffs argued that the class waiver in the arbitration provision is unconscionable under Washington law, and should not be enforced. NCLC’s brief described the benefits of arbitration, among which are lower overall costs and speed of decision, and explained that permitting classwide arbitration undermines those benefits without delivering any offsetting advantage over individual arbitration.