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Arbitration
Kentucky Supreme Court: FAA Doesn’t Preempt Kentucky’s Ban on Mandatory Employment Arbitration
October 24, 2018
Meanwhile, back in Kentucky, employers are thinking about next steps in the wake of Northern Kentucky Area Development District v. Synder, decided Sept. 27, 2018. There, the Kentucky Supreme Court held that the Federal Arbitration Act of 1925 ("FAA") does not preempt a Kentucky statute that, among other things, bans employers from making arbitration of employment disputes a condition of employment. Given how at least four US Supreme Court Justices may want to read the FAA, Synder might soon...
October 24, 2018
Meanwhile, back in Kentucky, employers are thinking about next steps in the wake of Northern Kentucky Area Development District v. Synder, decided Sept. 27, 2018. There, the Kentucky Supreme Court held that the Federal Arbitration Act of 1925 ("FAA") does not preempt a Kentucky statute that, among other things, bans employers from making arbitration of employment disputes a condition of employment. Given how at least four US Supreme Court Justices may want to read the FAA, Synder might soon...
A Data-Driven Exploration of Arbitration as a Settlement Tool: How Can We Express Confidence in Small Data Samples?
October 23, 2018
Recently, CRC Press published Data-Driven Law: Data Analytics and the New Legal Services by Edward J. Walters. The volume’s contributed chapters cover a wide range of topics at various levels of mathematical rigor, but they all underscore the importance of how data science can greatly improve the quality and efficiency of the legal process from document discovery to predicting potential judgments. While Data-Driven Law does not specifically discuss arbitration or other alternative dispute resolution...
October 23, 2018
Recently, CRC Press published Data-Driven Law: Data Analytics and the New Legal Services by Edward J. Walters. The volume’s contributed chapters cover a wide range of topics at various levels of mathematical rigor, but they all underscore the importance of how data science can greatly improve the quality and efficiency of the legal process from document discovery to predicting potential judgments. While Data-Driven Law does not specifically discuss arbitration or other alternative dispute resolution...
Kentucky Goads SCOTUS In New Arbitration Decision
October 23, 2018
I would understand if not every state supreme court got the memo from last year’s SCOTUS decision on FAA preemption, Kindred, which reminded state courts that the FAA prevents state courts from imposing additional requirements on arbitration agreements that are not required for other types of contracts. But Kentucky definitely got the memo. The memo was addressed to Kentucky. Yet, last week the Supreme Court of Kentucky released a new decision that continues to convey hostility to arbitration...
October 23, 2018
I would understand if not every state supreme court got the memo from last year’s SCOTUS decision on FAA preemption, Kindred, which reminded state courts that the FAA prevents state courts from imposing additional requirements on arbitration agreements that are not required for other types of contracts. But Kentucky definitely got the memo. The memo was addressed to Kentucky. Yet, last week the Supreme Court of Kentucky released a new decision that continues to convey hostility to arbitration...
Argument Preview: Justices to Mull Who Decides Whether to Arbitrate – the Judge or the Arbitrator
October 22, 2018
The November argument session begins with yet another case under the Federal Arbitration Act — Henry Schein Inc. v. Archer & White Sales Inc. With Henry Schein, New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira (from October) and Lamps Plus Inc. v. Varela (later on Monday morning), the court will have three FAA cases under its belt before the first of November – almost a match for the Armed Career Criminal Act! The issue in this case is straightforward: who decides whether a particular dispute should...
October 22, 2018
The November argument session begins with yet another case under the Federal Arbitration Act — Henry Schein Inc. v. Archer & White Sales Inc. With Henry Schein, New Prime Inc. v. Oliveira (from October) and Lamps Plus Inc. v. Varela (later on Monday morning), the court will have three FAA cases under its belt before the first of November – almost a match for the Armed Career Criminal Act! The issue in this case is straightforward: who decides whether a particular dispute should...
Tenth Circuit: Classwide Arbitration as a Gateway Issue?
October 22, 2018
In Dish Network L.L.C. v. Ray, No. 17-1013 (10th Cir. Aug. 21, 2018) (click here for a copy of the decision), the Tenth...
October 22, 2018
In Dish Network L.L.C. v. Ray, No. 17-1013 (10th Cir. Aug. 21, 2018) (click here for a copy of the decision), the Tenth...
International Investment Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Guide to Web Based Resources
October 19, 2018
Caroline L. Osborne, Associate Professor of Law and Library Director at the West Virginia University College of Law, has published a useful research tool titled, “International Investment Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Guide to Web Based Resources,” International Journal of Legal Information (forthcoming); WVU College of Law Research Paper No. 2018-004. In her journal article, Professor Osborne “discusses web-based sources of interest to scholars and practitioners in the area...
October 19, 2018
Caroline L. Osborne, Associate Professor of Law and Library Director at the West Virginia University College of Law, has published a useful research tool titled, “International Investment Law and Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Guide to Web Based Resources,” International Journal of Legal Information (forthcoming); WVU College of Law Research Paper No. 2018-004. In her journal article, Professor Osborne “discusses web-based sources of interest to scholars and practitioners in the area...
Houston COA Holds Administrator Not Bound by Will’s Arbitration Provision
October 18, 2018
A Houston appeals court has ruled that the administrator of an estate is not bound by an arbitration clause that was contained...
October 18, 2018
A Houston appeals court has ruled that the administrator of an estate is not bound by an arbitration clause that was contained...
Fifth Circuit Affirms Vacatur After Arbitrator Exceeded His Authority
October 16, 2018
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has held an arbitrator exceeded his authority when he reformed a multi-million dollar contract between two companies. In Hebbronville Lone Star Rentals, LLC v. Sunbelt Rentals Industrial Services, LLC, No. 17-50613 (5th Cir. August 6, 2018), an equipment rental company, Lone Star, sold its assets, contracts, and customer lists to Sunbelt for $25 million plus three subsequent contingent payments based on a formula that considered Sunbelt’s...
October 16, 2018
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has held an arbitrator exceeded his authority when he reformed a multi-million dollar contract between two companies. In Hebbronville Lone Star Rentals, LLC v. Sunbelt Rentals Industrial Services, LLC, No. 17-50613 (5th Cir. August 6, 2018), an equipment rental company, Lone Star, sold its assets, contracts, and customer lists to Sunbelt for $25 million plus three subsequent contingent payments based on a formula that considered Sunbelt’s...
El Paso COA Affirms Trial Court’s Order Denying Arbitration
October 15, 2018
Texas’ Eighth District Court of Appeals in El Paso has affirmed a trial court’s order stating two companies did not agree to exclusively arbitrate their claims against one another under Delaware law. In Encore Enterprises, Inc., et al. v. Borderplex Realty Trust, et al., No. 08-17-00134-CV (September 28, 2018), two real estate investment companies, Encore and Borderplex, signed a Contribution Agreement to jointly develop, fund, and manage multi-family properties. The Contribution Agreement...
October 15, 2018
Texas’ Eighth District Court of Appeals in El Paso has affirmed a trial court’s order stating two companies did not agree to exclusively arbitrate their claims against one another under Delaware law. In Encore Enterprises, Inc., et al. v. Borderplex Realty Trust, et al., No. 08-17-00134-CV (September 28, 2018), two real estate investment companies, Encore and Borderplex, signed a Contribution Agreement to jointly develop, fund, and manage multi-family properties. The Contribution Agreement...
Google Successfully Amends Its AdWords TOS to Add Arbitration Clause–Trudeau v. Google
October 15, 2018
The court explained how Google purported to impose the new terms on advertisers: Google gave notice of the 2017 TOS to the AdWords advertisers through multiple means, including through a direct email to the advertisers, a public blog post, and an alert on the advertisers’ AdWords account. Each notice directed the advertisers to a webpage where they could review and accept the modified terms, which were displayed in a single embedded window. Above the TOS window was the following admonition: “Please...
October 15, 2018
The court explained how Google purported to impose the new terms on advertisers: Google gave notice of the 2017 TOS to the AdWords advertisers through multiple means, including through a direct email to the advertisers, a public blog post, and an alert on the advertisers’ AdWords account. Each notice directed the advertisers to a webpage where they could review and accept the modified terms, which were displayed in a single embedded window. Above the TOS window was the following admonition: “Please...
