Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Harassment and Sexual Assault Causes

On March 3, 2022 President Biden signed the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021. This law provides no pre-dispute arbitration agreement shall be valid or enforceable with respect to a case that relates to sexual harassment disputes or sexual assault disputes unless the party alleging claims of sexual harassment or sexual assault elects to have the pre dispute agreement enforced.

This law also provides that the applicability of the law to an agreement to arbitrate and the validity and enforceability of an agreement to which this law applies shall be determined by a court, rather than an arbitrator, irrespective of whether the party resisting arbitration challenges the arbitration agreement specifically or in conjunction with other terms of the contract containing the agreement, and irrespective of whether the agreement purports to delegate the determinations to an arbitrator.

The Act became effective immediately, even as to previously executed arbitration agreements and waivers, and thus applies to any future claims.