Paul Bland Speaks About 100 Years of the Federal Arbitration Act

Passed in 1925, the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) was designed to encourage arbitration agreements as an alternative dispute mechanism in commercial disputes between parties of roughly equal bargaining power. The statute has become very controversial, however, as it has been extended to settings such as consumer and employment contracts, and this discussion delves into some of the biggest disagreements about the way the Act has been interpreted.

Panelists including Paul Bland, co-chair of Berger Montague’s Appeals and Complex Briefing Department; Pamela Bookman, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law at Fordham School of Law; John H. Chun, judge for the Western District of Washington, and Linda A. Klein, a senior managing shareholder at Baker Donelson and past president of the American Bar Association spoke aobut the FAA’s centennial. Amelia Ashton Thorn, articles editor of Judicature, served as moderator. 

Read more about their discussion in Judicature, published by the Bolch Judicial Institute Duke Law School here.

Berger Montague is one of the nation’s preeminent law firms focusing on complex civil litigation, class actions, and mass torts in federal and state courts throughout the United States. With more than $2.4 billion in 2025 post-trial judgments alone, the Firm is a leader in the fields of complex litigation, antitrust, consumer protection, defective products, environmental law, employment law, securities, and whistleblower cases, among many other practice areas. For over 55 years, Berger Montague has played leading roles in precedent-setting cases and has recovered over $50 billion for its clients and the classes they have represented. Berger Montague is headquartered in Philadelphia and has offices in Chicago; Malvern, PA; Minneapolis; San Diego; San Francisco; Toronto, Canada; Washington, D.C., and Wilmington, DE.