While I was busy writing deep thoughts about arbitration at the end of 2017 (see here and here), courts around the country rudely kept churning out new arbitration opinions. Hmph. So, I have some catching up to do. I start with one that has most captured my attention, Snow v. Bernstein, Shur, Sawyer &
Alabama Acknowledges AAA Rules Authorize Arbitrator To Determine Whether Non-Signatory Is Bound
The Alabama Supreme Court has followed the Eighth Circuit’s lead, concluding that when the parties agree to arbitrate pursuant to the AAA Rules, they have clearly and unmistakably authorized the arbitrator to determine who is bound by that arbitration agreement. Federal Ins. Co. v. Reedstrom, __ So. 3d __, 2015 WL 9264282 (Ala.
Arbitration Nation On Blawg 100 List Again
I am thrilled to announce that Arbitration Nation has been selected for the fourth year running to the ABA Journal’s Blawg 100 list. Thank you to everyone who nominated this blog and to those who continue reading it, suggesting topics, and challenging my interpretations.
Happy Thanksgiving to you all!
To (b)(1) or not to (b)(1): What to Call your Rule 12 Arbitration Motion
Let’s say your client gets sued in court, the parties have an arbitration agreement, and you want to compel arbitration right away and not mess around with any other court proceedings. You already know you can make a motion to compel instead of an Answer, but you are stuck on this: what do you
Second Circuit Clarifies That Arbitrable Claims Should Be Stayed, Not Dismissed
Parties who ask a court to compel arbitration of all the plaintiff’s claims have a decision to make: should they ask the court to stay the claims or dismiss them (if it finds them arbitrable)? After noting that the federal courts of appeal are “about evenly divided” on that question, the Second Circuit held that
A Modest Proposal: Change the Name of Arbitration
Arbitration has a brand recognition problem. Not enough people know what it is.
The recent CFPB report summarized studies showing that even among consumers who know they have an arbitration clause, the majority do not realize they cannot go to court or have their claims decided by a jury. One explanation is that those consumers
First Circuit Finds Plaintiff Waived Right to Arbitrate by Litigating for 9 Months
We haven’t had a good waiver case in a while. The First Circuit served one up last week with a flourish, teaching me multiple new words in the process (not for the first time, either). It found that a plaintiff had waived its right to arbitrate, not by bringing its claims to court
Two Federal Circuits Find Health Insurance Claims Outside Scope of Arbitration Clauses
Because courts apply a presumption of arbitrability when they analyze whether particular claims fall within the scope of an arbitration clause, and arbitration clauses are generally drafted very broadly, I don’t usually get to write about courts finding that a dispute falls outside the scope of arbitrable claims. But this week, both the Second and
The Preemption Club
California is the Judd Nelson of The Preemption Club. (Or the John Bender, if you prefer using character names.) The Supreme Court has sent the California courts to preemption detention for ignoring the Federal Arbitration Act in blockbuster, groundbreaking cases (see Concepcion). But California cannot help itself. It keeps coming up with novel arguments
ArbitrationNation Makes The Blawg 100 Again
The ABA Journal released its seventh annual list of the top 100 legal blogs in the country and ArbitrationNation is honored to be included for a second year in a row. ArbitrationNation is the only blawg on the list devoted to arbitration. (And it looks like one of only two from Minnesota authors…)
Now that