AT&T Mobility, LLC v. Concepcion

Vincent and Liza Concepcion (plaintiffs) sued AT&T Mobility, LLC (AT&T) (defendant) as part of a putative class action over sales-tax charges on advertised free phones. Their service agreement required individual arbitration and barred class arbitration. Relying on the California Supreme Court's Discover Bank rule, which deemed class-arbitration waivers in certain consumer adhesion contracts unconscionable, the district court denied AT&T's motion to compel individual arbitration, and the Ninth Circuit affirmed. The Supreme Court granted certiorari.