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Alan Kaplinsky

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Alan S. Kaplinsky
Born
Alan Stuart Kaplinsky

(1945-12-01) December 1, 1945 (age 78)
EducationUniversity of Pennsylvania (BS)
Boston College (JD)[1]
OccupationLawyer
SpouseEllen
Children3

Alan Stuart Kaplinsky[2] (born December 1, 1945) is an American lawyer. He heads the consumer financial services practice at Ballard Spahr. Kaplinsky "pioneered the use of pre-dispute arbitration provisions in consumer contracts"[3] and has written and lectured extensively on the subject.[4]

Career

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After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 1967 and Boston College Law School in 1970,[5] Kaplinsky clerked for Judge John Biggs, Jr. on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit before joining the Philadelphia law firm of Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen. From 1976 to 1979 he served as General Counsel of the Teachers Service Organization, Inc..[6]

In 1995, Kaplinsky joined Ballard Spahr LLP[7] along with several colleagues from Wolf, Block, Schorr and Solis-Cohen to found a consumer financial services practice at Ballard Spahr. Kaplinsky is best known for pioneering the use of arbitration provisions in the consumer finance area, including credit cards and auto loans. He is the first lawyer in the country to include class action waiver language in consumer arbitration clauses that require consumers to individually arbitrate any dispute.[8]

Academia, law reform work, and board memberships

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Kaplinsky was the first president of the American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers (1996–1998) and chair of the Committee on Consumer Financial Services of the Section of Business Law of the American Bar Association. He has chaired the Practising Law Institute's Annual Institute on Consumer Financial Services since its inception in 1995.[9]

Kaplinsky was elected to the American Law Institute in 2006 and in 2012 was named an Adviser on the Restatement Third, The Law of Consumer Contracts.[10]

In 2014, Kaplinsky was named to the Board of Directors of the National Jazz Museum in Harlem,[11] whose mission is "to preserve, promote, and present jazz by inspiring knowledge, appreciation and celebration of jazz locally, nationally, and internationally".[12]

Personal life

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He and his wife Ellen have three children.[6]

References

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  1. ^ "Alumni - Notes". Pennsylvania Gazette. July 2011. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  2. ^ Boston College Bulletin, Law, 1971
  3. ^ "Alan S. Kaplinsky". American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers. Archived from the original on 4 January 2014. Retrieved 3 January 2014.
  4. ^ "Alan S. Kaplinsky". Practising Law Institute. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  5. ^ "Alan S. Kaplinsky - Lawyer Profile". LexisNexis. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  6. ^ a b American College of Consumer Financial Services Lawyers Senator William Proxmire Lifetime Achievement Award Presented on April 9, 2016 to ALAN S. KAPLINSKY
  7. ^ Julie Stoiber (24 January 1996). "Five More Lawyers Resign From Wolf Block Steven Arbittier And Alan Kaplinsky Head The Group Going To Ballard Spahr. The Resignations Aren't Over". philly.com. Archived from the original on January 4, 2014. Retrieved 18 July 2012.
  8. ^ Mickey Meece (11 January 2012). "Arbitration Is Here to Stay and One Lawyer Says That Is Good for Consumers". Forbes. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  9. ^ Biography at Practising Law Institute
  10. ^ "Current Projects: Restatement Third, The Law of Consumer Contracts". American Law Institute. Archived from the original on 6 January 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  11. ^ "The Jazz Museum in Harlem: Staff & Board". Archived from the original on 2014-01-17. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
  12. ^ "The Jazz Museum in Harlem: Who We Are". Retrieved 20 January 2014.