SCRA Rights Protection Act of 2014

SCRA Rights Protection Act of 2014 - Amends the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to allow the use of arbitration to resolve a controversy that arises under a contract with a servicemember (or with a servicemember and spouse jointly) that provides for arbitration, only if all parties to the controversy consent in writing to arbitration after the controversy arises.

Allows a servicemember's waiver of any of such Act's rights and protections to be effective only if it is made after a specific dispute has arisen and the dispute is identified in the waiver.

Allows a representative of members of an aggrieved class, or a member of such class, to bring a private civil action for a violation of any rights or protections under such Act.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4068 Introduced in House (IH)]

113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                H. R. 4068

To amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to require the consent of 
      parties to contracts for the use of arbitration to resolve 
controversies arising under the contracts and subject to provisions of 
 such Act and to preserve the rights of servicemembers to bring class 
            actions under such Act, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           February 18, 2014

  Mr. Jones introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                     Committee on Veterans' Affairs

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act to require the consent of 
      parties to contracts for the use of arbitration to resolve 
controversies arising under the contracts and subject to provisions of 
 such Act and to preserve the rights of servicemembers to bring class 
            actions under such Act, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``SCRA Rights Protection Act of 
2014''.

SEC. 2. ELECTION OF ARBITRATION TO RESOLVE CONTROVERSIES UNDER 
              SERVICEMEMBERS CIVIL RELIEF ACT.

    (a) In General.--Section 102 of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act 
(50 U.S.C. App. 512) is amended by adding at the end the following new 
subsection:
    ``(d) Written Consent Required for Arbitration.--Notwithstanding 
any other provision of law, whenever a contract with a servicemember, 
or a servicemember and the servicemember's spouse jointly, provides for 
the use of arbitration to resolve a controversy subject to a provision 
of this Act and arising out of or relating to such contract, 
arbitration may be used to settle such controversy only if, after such 
controversy arises, all parties to such controversy consent in writing 
to use arbitration to settle such controversy.''.
    (b) Applicability.--Subsection (d) of such section, as added by 
subsection (a), shall apply with respect to contracts entered into, 
amended, altered, modified, renewed, or extended after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. LIMITATION ON WAIVER OF RIGHTS AND PROTECTIONS UNDER 
              SERVICEMEMBERS CIVIL RELIEF ACT.

    (a) In General.--Section 107(a) of the Servicemembers Civil Relief 
Act (50 U.S.C. App. 517(a)) is amended--
            (1) in the second sentence, by inserting ``and if it is 
        made after a specific dispute has arisen and the dispute is 
        identified in the waiver'' after ``to which it applies''; and
            (2) in the third sentence, by inserting ``and if it is made 
        after a specific dispute has arisen and the dispute is 
        identified in the waiver'' after ``period of military 
        service''.
    (b) Applicability.--The amendment made by subsection (a) shall 
apply with respect to waivers made on or after the date of the 
enactment of this Act.

SEC. 4. PRESERVATION OF RIGHT TO BRING CLASS ACTION UNDER 
              SERVICEMEMBERS CIVIL RELIEF ACT.

    (a) In General.--Section 802(a) of the Servicemembers Civil Relief 
Act (50 U.S.C. App. 597a(a)) is amended--
            (1) in paragraph (1), by striking ``and'' at the end;
            (2) in paragraph (2), by striking the period at the end and 
        inserting ``; and''; and
            (3) by adding at the end the following new paragraph:
            ``(3) be a representative party on behalf of members of a 
        class or be a member of a class, in accordance with the Federal 
        Rules of Civil Procedure, notwithstanding any previous 
        agreement to the contrary.''.
    (b) Construction.--The amendments made by subsection (a) shall not 
be construed to imply that a person aggrieved by a violation of such 
Act did not have a right to bring a civil action as a representative 
party on behalf of members of a class or be a member of a class in a 
civil action before the date of the enactment of this Act.
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