Blog Archives
SCOTX Reverses Order Denying Arbitration in Dallas County Structured Settlement Transfer Case
January 9, 2019
On Friday, the Supreme Court of Texas reversed a lower court’s order denying a party’s motion to compel arbitration because a provision included in a structured settlement transfer agreement stated the question of arbitrability was one for an arbitrator to decide. In RSL Funding, LLC v. Newsome, No. 16-0998 (Tex., December 21, 2018), a man named Newsome received a structured settlement from an insurance company following a personal injury. Decades...
January 9, 2019
On Friday, the Supreme Court of Texas reversed a lower court’s order denying a party’s motion to compel arbitration because a provision included in a structured settlement transfer agreement stated the question of arbitrability was one for an arbitrator to decide. In RSL Funding, LLC v. Newsome, No. 16-0998 (Tex., December 21, 2018), a man named Newsome received a structured settlement from an insurance company following a personal injury. Decades...
SCOTUS: Under FAA, Court Must Enforce Agreement Requiring Arbitrator to Determine Whether Dispute Should be Decided in Arbitration
January 8, 2019
Holding: The “wholly groundless” exception to the general rule that courts must enforce contracts that delegate threshold arbitrability questions to an arbitrator, not a court, is inconsistent with the Federal Arbitration Act and Supreme Court precedent. Judgment: Vacated and remanded, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Kavanaugh on January 9, 2019.
January 8, 2019
Holding: The “wholly groundless” exception to the general rule that courts must enforce contracts that delegate threshold arbitrability questions to an arbitrator, not a court, is inconsistent with the Federal Arbitration Act and Supreme Court precedent. Judgment: Vacated and remanded, 9-0, in an opinion by Justice Kavanaugh on January 9, 2019.
Standard for Arbitration Waiver
January 8, 2019
The Fifth Circuit found a waiver of the right to arbitrate in Forby v. One Technologies, finding as to the requirement of prejudice: “The district court erred in concluding that Forby failed to establish prejudice to her legal position. When a party will have to re-litigate in the arbitration forum an issue already decided by the district court in its favor, that party is prejudiced.” No.17-10883 (Nov. 28, 2018).
January 8, 2019
The Fifth Circuit found a waiver of the right to arbitrate in Forby v. One Technologies, finding as to the requirement of prejudice: “The district court erred in concluding that Forby failed to establish prejudice to her legal position. When a party will have to re-litigate in the arbitration forum an issue already decided by the district court in its favor, that party is prejudiced.” No.17-10883 (Nov. 28, 2018).
No “Neurobiological” Stop on the Erie Railway
January 7, 2019
A serious car accident involving a texting driver led to a products-liability claim based on the human “neurobiological response” to a text message – “They alleged that the accident was caused by Apple’s failure to implement the [lockout mechanism] patent on the iPhone 5 and by Apple’s failure to warn iPhone 5 users about the risks of distracted driving. In particular, the plaintiffs alleged that receipt of a text message triggers in the recipient ‘an unconscious and automatic, neurobiological...
January 7, 2019
A serious car accident involving a texting driver led to a products-liability claim based on the human “neurobiological response” to a text message – “They alleged that the accident was caused by Apple’s failure to implement the [lockout mechanism] patent on the iPhone 5 and by Apple’s failure to warn iPhone 5 users about the risks of distracted driving. In particular, the plaintiffs alleged that receipt of a text message triggers in the recipient ‘an unconscious and automatic, neurobiological...
SCOTX Will Not Consider $16 Million Arbitration Award Arising Out of Energy Dispute
January 7, 2019
The Supreme Court of Texas declined to consider whether a Travis County trial court’s order confirming an arbitration award should be overturned because no transcription of the arbitration hearing was created. In Dixie Equipment, LLC v. Energia de Ramos, S.A.P.I. de C.V., No. 18-0901, the Third District Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s order confirming a $16 million arbitration award that was issued following a dispute between two energy companies. A detailed background...
January 7, 2019
The Supreme Court of Texas declined to consider whether a Travis County trial court’s order confirming an arbitration award should be overturned because no transcription of the arbitration hearing was created. In Dixie Equipment, LLC v. Energia de Ramos, S.A.P.I. de C.V., No. 18-0901, the Third District Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s order confirming a $16 million arbitration award that was issued following a dispute between two energy companies. A detailed background...
Why Did People Pay $600 For a Pair of $20 Payless Shoes?
January 6, 2019
The Palessi Luxury Brand Launch Party Here’s what happened. The company took over a former Armani store in Santa Monica California for a weekend in late November 2018. It created a luxury ambiance and stocked the store with the same Payless shoes that sell for $20–$40. It invented an upscale fashion designer called Bruno Palessi, branding the store as a “Palessi” store. (It even created an Instagram account and website for the fake brand). For the Palessi store’s grand opening...
January 6, 2019
The Palessi Luxury Brand Launch Party Here’s what happened. The company took over a former Armani store in Santa Monica California for a weekend in late November 2018. It created a luxury ambiance and stocked the store with the same Payless shoes that sell for $20–$40. It invented an upscale fashion designer called Bruno Palessi, branding the store as a “Palessi” store. (It even created an Instagram account and website for the fake brand). For the Palessi store’s grand opening...
People Aren’t Dumb. The World Is Hard.
January 6, 2019
You wouldn’t think you could win a Nobel Prize for showing that humans tend to make irrational decisions. But that’s what Richard Thaler has done. The founder of behavioral economics describes his unlikely route to success; his reputation for being lazy; and his efforts to fix the world — one nudge at a time. * * * Years ago, Richard Thaler became enthralled with a new line of research about decision-making by the psychologists...
January 6, 2019
You wouldn’t think you could win a Nobel Prize for showing that humans tend to make irrational decisions. But that’s what Richard Thaler has done. The founder of behavioral economics describes his unlikely route to success; his reputation for being lazy; and his efforts to fix the world — one nudge at a time. * * * Years ago, Richard Thaler became enthralled with a new line of research about decision-making by the psychologists...
Exercise: A Sanctuary From Stress
January 5, 2019
But harnessing themselves to exercise frequently was not going to happen unless it was necessary to accelerate their weight loss. In the interim, study after study has pointed to the benefits of exercise for improving sleep (1), maintaining cognitive abilities (2), improving bone strength (3), maintaining cardiovascular health (4), decreasing the likelihood of certain types of cancer (5), regulating glucose control in diabetes (6), improving mood disorders (7), and, of course, losing weight. But...
January 5, 2019
But harnessing themselves to exercise frequently was not going to happen unless it was necessary to accelerate their weight loss. In the interim, study after study has pointed to the benefits of exercise for improving sleep (1), maintaining cognitive abilities (2), improving bone strength (3), maintaining cardiovascular health (4), decreasing the likelihood of certain types of cancer (5), regulating glucose control in diabetes (6), improving mood disorders (7), and, of course, losing weight. But...
Why you should treat the tech you use at work like a colleague
January 5, 2019
Imagine your company hires a new employee and then everyone just ignores them, day in and day out, while they sit alone at their desk getting paid to do nothing. This situation actually happens all the time -- when companies invest millions of dollars in new tech tools only to have frustrated employees disregard them, says Nadjia Yousif. In this fun and practical talk, she offers advice on how to better collaborate with the technologies in your workplace -- by treating them like colleagues.
January 5, 2019
Imagine your company hires a new employee and then everyone just ignores them, day in and day out, while they sit alone at their desk getting paid to do nothing. This situation actually happens all the time -- when companies invest millions of dollars in new tech tools only to have frustrated employees disregard them, says Nadjia Yousif. In this fun and practical talk, she offers advice on how to better collaborate with the technologies in your workplace -- by treating them like colleagues.
Should Antitrust Survive Behavioral Economics?
January 4, 2019
The accepted economic foundation of antitrust law is straightforward: The neoclassical market model shows that perfect competition among firms maximizes productive and allocative efficiencies and social welfare. This model rests on several assumptions, including — as in neoclassical economics more generally — the notion that consumers are rational actors whose decisions always maximize their utility. This model rests on several assumptions, including — as in neoclassical economics more generally...
January 4, 2019
The accepted economic foundation of antitrust law is straightforward: The neoclassical market model shows that perfect competition among firms maximizes productive and allocative efficiencies and social welfare. This model rests on several assumptions, including — as in neoclassical economics more generally — the notion that consumers are rational actors whose decisions always maximize their utility. This model rests on several assumptions, including — as in neoclassical economics more generally...
