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Arbitration
English Justice for an American Company?
July 19, 2018
Christopher C. French, Professor of Practice at Penn State Law, has published “English Justice for an American Company?,” 97 Tex. L. Rev. Online __ (2018). In his scholarly work, Professor French discusses arbitrator neutrality in the context of a United Kingdom insurance dispute related to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Here is the abstract: This Essay addresses the Halliburton Co. v. Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd. case, which is pending...
July 19, 2018
Christopher C. French, Professor of Practice at Penn State Law, has published “English Justice for an American Company?,” 97 Tex. L. Rev. Online __ (2018). In his scholarly work, Professor French discusses arbitrator neutrality in the context of a United Kingdom insurance dispute related to the 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Here is the abstract: This Essay addresses the Halliburton Co. v. Chubb Bermuda Insurance Ltd. case, which is pending...
Fifth Circuit Overturns Arbitration Order Where Employer Failed to Countersign Agreement
July 18, 2018
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has reversed a Texas federal court’s order compelling arbitration in a sexual harassment and discrimination case because one party failed to sign an agreement to arbitrate. In Huckaba v. Ref-Chem, L.P., No. 17-50341 (5th Cir. June 11, 2018), a woman, Huckaba, signed an arbitration agreement that waived her right to sue Ref-Chem L.P. prior to beginning employment with the company. The agreement included a signature box for Ref-Chem...
July 18, 2018
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has reversed a Texas federal court’s order compelling arbitration in a sexual harassment and discrimination case because one party failed to sign an agreement to arbitrate. In Huckaba v. Ref-Chem, L.P., No. 17-50341 (5th Cir. June 11, 2018), a woman, Huckaba, signed an arbitration agreement that waived her right to sue Ref-Chem L.P. prior to beginning employment with the company. The agreement included a signature box for Ref-Chem...
First Circuit Holds Uber’s Online Mandatory Arbitration Clause is Unenforceable
July 17, 2018
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has ruled that an arbitration clause contained in a ride-sharing app company’s online contract is unenforceable under Massachusetts law. In Cullinane v. Uber Technologies, Inc., No. 16-2023 (1st Cir. June 25, 2018), several new Uber customers downloaded the company’s ride-sharing app to their cell phone in order to secure transportation to Boston’s Logan International Airport. In order to use the transportation app, the new customers...
July 17, 2018
The United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit has ruled that an arbitration clause contained in a ride-sharing app company’s online contract is unenforceable under Massachusetts law. In Cullinane v. Uber Technologies, Inc., No. 16-2023 (1st Cir. June 25, 2018), several new Uber customers downloaded the company’s ride-sharing app to their cell phone in order to secure transportation to Boston’s Logan International Airport. In order to use the transportation app, the new customers...
A Proposal: Adopt a “Clear and Unmistakable” Standard to Determine If Parties Have Agreed to “Class Arbitration”
July 16, 2018
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that “class arbitration” may be permitted if an arbitration agreement authorizes it, Stolt-Nielsen...
July 16, 2018
The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that “class arbitration” may be permitted if an arbitration agreement authorizes it, Stolt-Nielsen...
SCOTX Will Not Consider Whether Arbitrator Exceeded Authority in Workplace Discrimination Case
July 12, 2018
The Supreme Court of Texas has declined to consider whether an arbitrator exceeded his authority in a workplace discrimination dispute. In Methodist Healthcare System, Ltd., LLP v. Friesenhahn, No. 17-0955, a Texas woman, Friesenhahn, was awarded almost $384,000 in damages and legal fees for discrimination following arbitration with her former employer, Methodist Healthcare Systems. After a trial court confirmed the award, the hospital appealed the case to the Fourth District...
July 12, 2018
The Supreme Court of Texas has declined to consider whether an arbitrator exceeded his authority in a workplace discrimination dispute. In Methodist Healthcare System, Ltd., LLP v. Friesenhahn, No. 17-0955, a Texas woman, Friesenhahn, was awarded almost $384,000 in damages and legal fees for discrimination following arbitration with her former employer, Methodist Healthcare Systems. After a trial court confirmed the award, the hospital appealed the case to the Fourth District...
SCOTUS to Consider Delegation of “Wholly Groundless” Arbitrability Claims
July 12, 2018
The Supreme Court of the United States has granted certiorari in another arbitration case. In Henry Schein, Inc. v. Archer and White Sales, Inc., No. 17-1272, a dental equipment distributor, Archer, filed a lawsuit against a dental equipment manufacturer and distributor along with its wholly-owned subsidiaries alleging the companies committed federal and state antitrust violations. The case was referred to a magistrate judge and the defendants filed a motion to compel arbitration...
July 12, 2018
The Supreme Court of the United States has granted certiorari in another arbitration case. In Henry Schein, Inc. v. Archer and White Sales, Inc., No. 17-1272, a dental equipment distributor, Archer, filed a lawsuit against a dental equipment manufacturer and distributor along with its wholly-owned subsidiaries alleging the companies committed federal and state antitrust violations. The case was referred to a magistrate judge and the defendants filed a motion to compel arbitration...
Can Arbitrability Questions Concerning a Non-Signatory to the Arbitration Agreement Be “Delegated” to an Arbitrator?
July 11, 2018
“Gateway” arbitration issues, including the validity, enforceability, and scope of an arbitration agreement, are presumptively to be decided by a court, rather than by an arbitrator. However, such gateway issues may be “delegated” to an arbitrator, e.g., AT&T Technologies, Inc. v. Communications Workers, 475 U.S. 643, 106 S.Ct. 1415 (1986), if the pertinent arbitration agreement clearly and unmistakably manifests the parties’ intention to do so, First Options of Chicago v. Kaplan,...
July 11, 2018
“Gateway” arbitration issues, including the validity, enforceability, and scope of an arbitration agreement, are presumptively to be decided by a court, rather than by an arbitrator. However, such gateway issues may be “delegated” to an arbitrator, e.g., AT&T Technologies, Inc. v. Communications Workers, 475 U.S. 643, 106 S.Ct. 1415 (1986), if the pertinent arbitration agreement clearly and unmistakably manifests the parties’ intention to do so, First Options of Chicago v. Kaplan,...
SCOTX Reverses Order Denying Jefferson County Constable’s Arbitration Request
July 10, 2018
The Supreme Court of Texas has reversed an appellate court’s order based on a related case that was decided by the state’s highest court in April. In Stines v. Jefferson County, Texas, No. 17-0623 (June 15, 2018), a deputy constable, Stine, was terminated from his position in late 2014. Following termination, Stine attempted to invoke his right to arbitration pursuant to the terms of a collective bargaining agreement the Jefferson County Constables Association entered into with...
July 10, 2018
The Supreme Court of Texas has reversed an appellate court’s order based on a related case that was decided by the state’s highest court in April. In Stines v. Jefferson County, Texas, No. 17-0623 (June 15, 2018), a deputy constable, Stine, was terminated from his position in late 2014. Following termination, Stine attempted to invoke his right to arbitration pursuant to the terms of a collective bargaining agreement the Jefferson County Constables Association entered into with...
Fifth Circuit Invalidates Arbitration Agreement After Company Fails to Sign It
July 9, 2018
In a ruling that could have lawyers double-checking the signature blocks on all manner of arbitration clauses, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has invalidated an agreement because the employer failed to sign it.
July 9, 2018
In a ruling that could have lawyers double-checking the signature blocks on all manner of arbitration clauses, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has invalidated an agreement because the employer failed to sign it.
Arbitration: Law, Policy, and Practice
July 6, 2018
Maureen A. Weston, Professor of Law at Pepperdine University School of Law and Director of the Entertainment, Media & Sports Dispute Resolution Project, Kristen M. Blankley, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Nebraska College of Law, Jill I. Gross, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law at Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, and Stephen Huber, Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of Houston Law Center, recently published a new book...
July 6, 2018
Maureen A. Weston, Professor of Law at Pepperdine University School of Law and Director of the Entertainment, Media & Sports Dispute Resolution Project, Kristen M. Blankley, Associate Professor of Law at the University of Nebraska College of Law, Jill I. Gross, Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Law at Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University, and Stephen Huber, Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of Houston Law Center, recently published a new book...
