United States: District Court Of New Jersey Finds Plaintiff Agreed To Arbitrate By Not Opting Out Of The Arbitration Program [telecom]

Article by Howard M. Wexler and Robert T. Szyba Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Seyfarth Synopsis: The District Court of New Jersey recently found an arbitration agreement to be enforceable where the employee acknowledged receipt and did not follow the procedure to opt out of the arbitration program.

In Horowitz v. AT&T, Inc., No. 3:17-cv-4827-BRM-LHG (D.N.J. Jan. 2,

2019), a federal district court upheld an employee arbitration agreement, which provided in pertinent part, "[i]f you do not opt out by the deadline, you are agreeing to the arbitration process as set forth in the Agreement. This means that you and AT&T are giving up the right to a court or jury trial on claims covered by the Agreement." In Horowitz, the plaintiffs opened their emails, clicked on the hyperlink containing the agreement, and did not opt out by the deadline.