WASHINGTON, D.C., USA — Editor's note: The video attached to this story previously aired Jan. 6, 2022.
A proposal supported by a pair of lawmakers from Maine to protect the rights of sexual assault and harassment victims has become law.
The proposal takes aim at forced arbitration. It is designed to stop people who commit sexual assault and harassment from using such pre-dispute agreements to push victims into private arbitration proceedings, said Republican Sen. Susan Collins. Democratic Rep. Chellie Pingree also supported the measure.
Collins said the pre-dispute agreements are used to prevent survivors from taking their cases to court. She said the new law will “prohibit arbitration clauses that prevent survivors of sexual violence from pursuing justice in the forum of their choice.”
President Joe Biden signed the bill into law recently. It was originally introduced by Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina and Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand of New York and was supported by a bipartisan coalition of lawmakers.