Bipartisan Legislation Would Give Voice to Survivors of Sexual Assault, Harassment
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) and Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.) today introduced the Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021. The bill would help stop perpetrators of sexual harassment and sexual assault from keeping their misconduct hidden in secretive arbitration proceedings and instead allow those claims in open court. Remington A. Gregg, counsel for civil justice and consumer rights for Public Citizen, released the following statement:
“We strongly support efforts to allow survivors of sexual harassment and sexual assault to bring their claims before a neutral, open court of law. Forced arbitration hides these incidents in the shadows and allows systemic issues to continue unaddressed. We applaud Sens. Gillibrand and Graham for taking this important first step.
“However, we continue to support as a priority the Forced Arbitration Injustice Repeal (FAIR) Act: legislation that would prohibit forced arbitration clauses in a wider range of claims including civil rights, consumer, employment, and antitrust disputes. It is high time that we stop protecting wrongdoers who use forced arbitration clauses to hide their conduct and instead allow those who have been wronged the full force of America’s justice system.”