Motion to compel arbitration

The defendant’s first move to get out of court.

A motion to compel arbitration asks the court to enforce the arbitration clause and send the dispute out of the courtroom. In consumer cases it is usually the first substantive fight.

Its outcome frequently decides the case, because a class action forced into individual arbitration effectively ends.

Related terms

• Class action - One lawsuit brought on behalf of everyone harmed the same way.
• Class representative - The named person who stands in for the whole class.
• Class certification - The court ruling that lets one case speak for everyone.
• Arbitration clause - Contract language sending disputes to a private forum instead of court.
• Class-action waiver - A term saying you may only bring a claim for yourself, never as a group.
• Unconscionability - A contract term so one-sided a court refuses to enforce it.
• Contract of adhesion - A take-it-or-leave-it contract with no room to negotiate.
• Assent - Whether you actually agreed, and how the company proved it.