American Express Wins Bid to Arbitrate Cardholder Charge Dispute

American Express National Bank can compel arbitration in a cardholder dispute after the Fifth Circuit found the credit card company proceeded far enough with the suit that it couldn’t mandate the case resolution process.

Amex didn’t waive its right to arbitrate Michelle Barnett’s Fair Credit Reporting Act claim, so the case should be reversed and sent back to the US District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi, the US Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled Tuesday.

• Amex didn’t “substantially” invoke the judicial process in Barnett’s FCRA suit because its initial state court action involved different claims involving ...