Validity of Arbitration Agreement

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Since the last post dealt with legislative overrides of arbitration agreements, this one will expand on that theme with a preview of an upcoming Supreme Court case.  In CompuCredit Corp. v. Greenwood, to be heard on October 11, the Supreme Court will decide whether Congress intended to prohibit arbitration of claims brought under a…

The Federal Trade Commission has long construed the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act, a.k.a the “federal lemon law,” as barring binding arbitration provisions that consumers are asked to sign upon purchasing a product.  In fact, the FTC issued a rule that prohibits courts from enforcing binding arbitration clauses in written warranty agreements covered by the statute.  In…

By Liz Kramer and Patrick Burns (http://www.valuesolveadr.org/patrick.html ), Guest Blogger

If an arbitration agreement calls for the dispute to be administered by an ADR provider that will not or cannot accept the case, or calls for the application of non-existent rules, it may not be enforceable.  That issue seems to be increasingly prevalent in…

In April, the Supreme Court struck down a common law rule in California that declared most consumer arbitration agreements void if they prohibit classwide arbitration of claims, holding that it was preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act.  AT&T Mobility, LLC v. Concepcion, 131S. Ct. 1740 ( 2011).  In the last few weeks, two federal circuit…

What is an arbitrator to do after concluding that the parties’ entire agreement — the same agreement that authorized the arbitration proceeding — is invalid?  That is the question that the California Court of Appeal addressed this week.  The California court ruled that the arbitrator was authorized to reach a decision on the merits of…

West Virginia’s highest court acknowledged just weeks ago that a state statute, which nullified any nursing home resident’s waiver of his or her right to a court action, is preempted by the FAA.  Brown v. Genesis Healthcare Corp., et al, __ S.E.2d ___, 2011 WL 2611327 (W. Va. June 29, 2011).  More interesting, however,…