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Arbitration
Article on the Will as Arbitration Contract
April 28, 2015
E. Gary Spitko (Santa Clara University School of Law) recently published an article entitled, The Will as an Implied Unilateral...
April 28, 2015
E. Gary Spitko (Santa Clara University School of Law) recently published an article entitled, The Will as an Implied Unilateral...
Non-Binding Arbitration: Is It Right for Your Case?
April 24, 2015
Non-binding arbitration, which is mandatory in certain civil cases in New Jersey's federal and state courts, is far from non-binding in practice and not necessarily more efficient or economical than traditional litigation. Unlike contractually agreed-to binding arbitration, non-binding arbitration exposes the parties to additional costs, and may cause additional delay in the final adjudication of the case. The non-binding arbitration process can result in serious consequences, including the dismissal...
April 24, 2015
Non-binding arbitration, which is mandatory in certain civil cases in New Jersey's federal and state courts, is far from non-binding in practice and not necessarily more efficient or economical than traditional litigation. Unlike contractually agreed-to binding arbitration, non-binding arbitration exposes the parties to additional costs, and may cause additional delay in the final adjudication of the case. The non-binding arbitration process can result in serious consequences, including the dismissal...
A Uniform Theory of Federal Court Jurisdiction Under the Federal Arbitration Act
April 23, 2015
The Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) is considered an anomaly among federal statutes. The protections of the FAA are substantive law, yet citing to the FAA is insufficient to invoke the federal courts’ jurisdiction. Instead, parties seeking federal court assistance on arbitration matters must have independent jurisdictional grounds, usually federal question or diversity jurisdiction. This requirement stems from FAA Section 4, which states that jurisdiction lies in any district court which, “save...
April 23, 2015
The Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) is considered an anomaly among federal statutes. The protections of the FAA are substantive law, yet citing to the FAA is insufficient to invoke the federal courts’ jurisdiction. Instead, parties seeking federal court assistance on arbitration matters must have independent jurisdictional grounds, usually federal question or diversity jurisdiction. This requirement stems from FAA Section 4, which states that jurisdiction lies in any district court which, “save...
More Companies Block Employees From Filing Suits
April 23, 2015
Companies are quietly eliminating a long-held employee privilege: the right to band together to take the boss to court. As employers try to stem the costs of lawsuits, more companies are requiring workers to bring serious complaints to arbitration and forbidding employees from participating in class actions. The percentage of companies using arbitration clauses to preclude class-action claims soared to 43% last year from 16% in 2012, according to a survey of nearly 350 companies conducted by management-side...
April 23, 2015
Companies are quietly eliminating a long-held employee privilege: the right to band together to take the boss to court. As employers try to stem the costs of lawsuits, more companies are requiring workers to bring serious complaints to arbitration and forbidding employees from participating in class actions. The percentage of companies using arbitration clauses to preclude class-action claims soared to 43% last year from 16% in 2012, according to a survey of nearly 350 companies conducted by management-side...
SCOTUS Grants Cert on an Arbitration Case
April 15, 2015
The case is DIRECTV, Inc. v. Imburgia. You can read all about it on SCOTUSblog. The issue is: Whether the California Court of Appeal erred by holding, in direct conflict with the Ninth Circuit, that a reference to state law in an arbitration agreement governed by the Federal Arbitration Act requires the application of state law preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act. The case involved a consumer contract with a class action waiver in Section 9. It also provided as follows: “if . . . the law of your...
April 15, 2015
The case is DIRECTV, Inc. v. Imburgia. You can read all about it on SCOTUSblog. The issue is: Whether the California Court of Appeal erred by holding, in direct conflict with the Ninth Circuit, that a reference to state law in an arbitration agreement governed by the Federal Arbitration Act requires the application of state law preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act. The case involved a consumer contract with a class action waiver in Section 9. It also provided as follows: “if . . . the law of your...
Fifth Circuit Reverses District Court’s Order Vacating Arbitral Award
April 13, 2015
BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) and Alstom Transportation, Inc. (Alstom) had a Maintenance Agreement that included an arbitration clause. BNSF notified Alstom that it was eliminating locomotives from its active fleet, which triggered a clause in the Maintenance Agreement that required discussions so that an economic adjustment could be made in Alstom's favor. BNSF then terminated the Agreement before any such discussions took place. BNSF sought declaratory relief in a District Court, but the District...
April 13, 2015
BNSF Railway Company (BNSF) and Alstom Transportation, Inc. (Alstom) had a Maintenance Agreement that included an arbitration clause. BNSF notified Alstom that it was eliminating locomotives from its active fleet, which triggered a clause in the Maintenance Agreement that required discussions so that an economic adjustment could be made in Alstom's favor. BNSF then terminated the Agreement before any such discussions took place. BNSF sought declaratory relief in a District Court, but the District...
Lawyers Fear Ruling Moves Med Mal to Arbitration
April 10, 2015
The prospect of moving medical malpractice litigation away from Texas state district courts and into arbitration is a frightening prospect for some plaintiff and defense lawyers alike. Plaintiff lawyers fear the unseemly prospect of health care providers requiring patients to give up the right to a trial by jury before receiving treatment. And defense attorneys worry doctors could give up far too much in the way of their appellate rights if an arbitrator misapplies the state tort reform laws designed...
April 10, 2015
The prospect of moving medical malpractice litigation away from Texas state district courts and into arbitration is a frightening prospect for some plaintiff and defense lawyers alike. Plaintiff lawyers fear the unseemly prospect of health care providers requiring patients to give up the right to a trial by jury before receiving treatment. And defense attorneys worry doctors could give up far too much in the way of their appellate rights if an arbitrator misapplies the state tort reform laws designed...
Skadden Class Action Chronicle
April 10, 2015
Skadden has posted its spring 2015 Class Action Chronicle. As we have noted in previous editions of the Chronicle, a number...
April 10, 2015
Skadden has posted its spring 2015 Class Action Chronicle. As we have noted in previous editions of the Chronicle, a number...
Consumer Bureau Targets Mandatory Arbitration Clauses
April 9, 2015
Financial companies routinely use mandatory arbitration to block class-action lawsuits, making it difficult for consumers...
April 9, 2015
Financial companies routinely use mandatory arbitration to block class-action lawsuits, making it difficult for consumers...
Lemley & Leslie on Antitrust Arbitration
April 8, 2015
Mark A. Lemley and Christopher R. Leslie (Stanford Law School and University of California, Irvine School of Law) have posted...
April 8, 2015
Mark A. Lemley and Christopher R. Leslie (Stanford Law School and University of California, Irvine School of Law) have posted...
