Vacatur Of Arbitration Awards For Evident Partiality

This article–by Blaine Green and Dustin Chase-Woods of Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP and published in JD Supra–discussing the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Monster Energy Co. v. City Beverages, LLC, in which the U.S. Supreme Court recently denied certiorari, sets the stage as follows: “In Monster Energy, the Ninth Circuit broadly interpreted the Federal Arbitration Act’s “evident partiality” standard for vacating arbitration awards, finding that the arbitrator’s failure to disclose a partial ownership interest in the arbitration provider (JAMS), combined with the fact that JAMS had administered 97 arbitrations for Monster in the preceding five years, created an impression of bias and partiality that required the award be vacated.”