Supreme Court Accepts Credit Arbitration Suit

(CN) - A motion to compel arbitration that the 9th Circuit rejected will face U.S. Supreme Court review, the justices said Monday.

Wanda Greenwood and two others had filed a class action against CompuCredit and Columbus Bank and Trust over Aspire Visa subprime credit cards that the defendants marketed to consumers with low or weak credit scores.

Though CompuCredit and Columbus advertised that there was "no deposit required" for the cards, which would help them rebuild their credit, they charged about $257 in fees during the first year, against a $300 credit limit, the class claimed.

After the consumers filed their class action suit, CompuCredit and Columbus moved to compel arbitration. A federal judge ruled, however, that the arbitration clause in the Aspire Visa credit card agreements was invalid and void under a provision of the Credit Repair Organization Act, which prohibits the waiver of a consumer's right to sue in court.

A federal appeals court panel sitting in San Francisco affirmed that decision in August.

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