Monthly Archives: March 2021

Meredith-Anne Berger and Anne Dana of Seyfarth Shaw have authored this article, available through JD Supra, discussing the recent decision by the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey in New Jersey Civil Justice Institute v. Grewal, in which the court held that New Jersey’s ban on enforcement of mandatory pre-dispute arbitration provisionsContinue reading ““Preempted! New Jersey Courts Hold Ban on Pre-Dispute Arbitration of Employment Claims Preempted by Federal Arbitration Act””

The Illinois Appellate Court’s recent decision in Zuniga v. Major League Baseball is the subject of this JD Supra article by Patrick Hammon of McManis Faulker. As noted by Mr. Hammon, “the appellate court focused on the consideration that made this case different from many other unconscionability cases—specifically, the fact that Ms. Zuniga did notContinue reading ““Ticket Transfer Undermines Cubs’ Ability to Compel Arbitration””

In American Family Life Assurance Company v. Baker, a Second Circuit panel affirmed the Southern District’s decision to compel arbitration of ERISA claims, when the employer was forced to unravel conflicting contract provisions that on their face served to collectively preclude the employees from asserting their claims altogether. One contractual provision purported to mandate arbitrationContinue reading “Court Upholds Enforceability Of Arbitration Provision When Company Waives Conflicting Provision”

Chael Clark of Carlton Fields has authored this article, available in JD Supra, discussing the Southern District’s decision in Copragri S.A. v. Agribusiness United DMCC. As the article explains, [t]he court held that because Copragri was not a party to the bill of lading and therefore did not consent to arbitration in New York, theContinue reading ““SDNY Vacates Arbitration Award in International Maritime Shipping Dispute””

Contract drafters who treat choice of law provisions as insignificant should think twice, at least if there is a desire to ensure disputes will be arbitrated. In Frederick v. Law Office of Fox Kohler & Associates PLLC LLC , the Third Circuit, called to assess whether the lower court had incorrectly interpreted an arbitration provisionContinue reading “Choice Of Law Provision Can Be Determinative Regarding Arbitrability”

As described in this article in Scottish Legal News, the United Kingdom has set aside a £1 million budget to incentivize mediation, by providing 2000 couples on a first come, first served basis with tax-free vouchers, with the hope of relieving burdens on the courts. Interesting idea, that if utilized in appropriate circumstances, could payContinue reading ““England: Divorcing couples to receive £500 mediation voucher””

David Zaslowsky and Grant Hanessian of Baker McKenzie have this article in Lexology, discussing the Southern District’s decision in Accent Delight Int’l Ltd. v. Sotheby’s, precluding litigating parties from obtaining in discovery documents utilized in a related private mediation.

By a 2-1 decision, Florida’s Fourth District Court of Appeal has reversed a lower court’s order compelling arbitration of claims brought by investors against investment company-related defendants. In Fallang Family Limited Partnership v. Privcap Companies, LLC, the parties’ agreement, materially similar to countless others, provided as follows: 12.10 Arbitration. In the event of any disputeContinue reading “Divided Florida Appellate Opinion Rejects Contractual Reference To AAA Rules As Predicate For Compelling Arbitration”

Jennifer Smith Thomas of Rumberger Kirk has this article, available in JD Supra, discussing the Florida Court of Appeal decision in City of Miami v. Ortiz, which she describes as “a rare finding against arbitrability where an arbitration clause was present in a contract,” and urging “contractors, vendors, and consumer service providers who seek toContinue reading “Court “Makes Rare Finding Against Arbitrability where Arbitration Clause is Present in Contract””

International arbitration practitioners who have been monitoring the split among the United States federal circuits as to the applicability of 28 U.S.C. § 1782 to permit discovery may be interested to know that the Supreme Court, having granted certiorari in a Seventh Circuit case, will decide the issue. As summarized in this National Law ReviewContinue reading ““SCOTUS Finally Agrees to Address Discovery for Use in Foreign Arbitration””