President Biden Signs Law Restricting Arbitration Agreements in Sexual Harassment Claims

On March 3rd, President Biden signed H.R. 4445 into law. The law effectively ends forced arbitration of workplace sexual harassment and sexual assault claims, and restricts the enforceability of joint-action waivers involving sexual harassment and sexual assault claims.

Before we jump into the new law, let’s discuss arbitration agreements and joint-action waivers generally. Arbitration agreements prohibit parties from using the public courts to litigate legal claims. Instead, the parties must use arbitration, which keeps the matter private. On top of being private, arbitration can also be costly, as arbitrators charge much more than the cost of court filing fees.

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