Contact: John Hartgen
             703-739-0800
             [email protected]

ARBITRATION CLAUSES IN CONSUMER LOAN AGREEMENTS ARE UNCONSCIONABLE, ACCORDING TO LATEST ABI QUICK POLL

April 23, 2008, Alexandria, Va. — A majority of respondents in a recent ABI Quick Poll strongly agreed that arbitration clauses in consumer loan agreements are unconscionable. Fifty-six percent of respondents “strongly agreed” and 12 percent “somewhat agreed” that arbitration clauses in consumer loan agreements are unconscionable.

Twenty-eight percent of respondents, however, did not think that arbitration clauses in consumer loan agreements were unconscionable. Nineteen percent “disagreed strongly” and 9 percent “somewhat disagreed” that arbitration clauses in consumer loan agreements are unconscionable.

In the case of Tillman v. Commercial Credit Loans (N.C. Sup. Ct., 1/25/08), the North Carolina Supreme Court determined that an arbitration clause in a consumer loan agreement was unconscionable. The Court found that an arbitration clause within the loan agreements made by Commercial Credit Loans exposed its customers to unreasonably high costs, making it financially unfeasible for the customers to even bring a claim forward.

ABI members and members of the public were welcome to submit their response to the statement: “Arbitration Clauses in Consumer Loan Agreements are Unconscionable (Tillman v. Commercial Credit Loans (N.C. Sup. Ct., 1/25/08).”

ABI’s Quick Poll is posted on ABI’s home page, www.abiworld.org. ABI members and the public are invited to respond to a question on a timely bankruptcy or insolvency issue. Visit http://www.abiworld.net/quickpoll/to access the results of previous ABI Quick Polls.

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ABI is the largest multi-disciplinary, nonpartisan organization dedicated to research and education on matters related to insolvency. ABI was founded in 1982 to provide Congress and the public with unbiased analysis of bankruptcy issues. The ABI membership includes nearly 11,700 attorneys, accountants, bankers, judges, professors, lenders, turnaround specialists and other bankruptcy professionals, providing a forum for the exchange of ideas and information. For additional information on ABI, visit www.abiworld.org. For additional conference information, visit http://www.abiworld.org/conferences.html.