"2nd Circuit: Plaintiffs in Credit Card Antitrust Case Cannot Be Compelled to Arbitrate"

In an article yesterday, the New York Law Journal reported on a new Second Circuit decision in an antitrust class action.  The Second Circuit held that mandatory arbitration clauses in the plaintiffs' cardholder agreements with Visa and Master Card did not apply to the plaintiffs' antitrust lawsuit against American Express, which alleged that AmEx formed a price-fixing conspiracy with Visa and Master Card to inflate cardholders' currency conversion fees.  Ross v. American Express Co., ___ F.3d ___ (2d Cir. Oct. 21, 2008).