Contract and lease language that limits a party's access to procedural or substantive rights

Examples in the bill of provisions that modify or limit otherwise available necessary or useful procedural or substantive rights include provisions that require the consumer, borrower, tenant, or employee to do any of the following:

1. Assert a claim against the person who prepared the contract or lease in a forum that is not in this state.

2. Forego access to evidence otherwise obtainable under the rules of procedure of a convenient judicial forum.

3. Forego the right to appeal a decision that is not based on substantial evidence or that disregards his or her legal rights.

4. Require the commencement of a proceeding sooner than would be required by the applicable statute or limitations.

5. Forego an award of attorney fees, civil penalties, or punitive damages otherwise available by law.

6. Waive the right of access to a judicial forum or to a jury trial, unless the contract or lease includes judicial review of any arbitration agreement.

The bill specifies that these provisions do not apply to collective bargaining agreements or to certain contracts of employment for compensation in excess of $100,000 per year. The bill also permits a party to a contract or lease to seek judicial review of the enforceability of one of these provisions as a preliminary matter in a court action or arbitration proceeding in which such a provision is at issue.