The title of this article is somewhat misleading. A clause that prevented any right of action whatsoever would most likely be illegal in many countries (includ

The title of this article is somewhat misleading. A clause that prevented any right of action whatsoever would most likely be illegal in many countries (including, I think, all EU countries, the US and Australia/NZ). However, "binding arbitration" clauses which require parties to submit to alternative dispute resolution procedures before any legal action is taken are actually quite common (perhaps more common in Aus/NZ, the UK and the EU than in the US?). They're a common feature of mobile phone contracts, internet contracts, et cetera. Edit: I see this question has been given excellent treatment here: http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3001086 http://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=3001086