A collection of the most recent U.S. international arbitration decisions is available here. Decisions can be quickly retrieved by using the filter tools below.
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Al Rushaid v. National Oilwell Varco Inc., No. 15-20260 (5th Cir. Feb. 17, 2016)02/17/2016
Appeal from the district court dismissed; the court lacked jurisdiction to consider an appeal of an interlocutory order where the lower court compelled arbitration, albeit not in the appellant's preferred arbitral forum.
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Totten v. Kellog Brown & Root LLC, No. 5:15-CV-01876-ODW-KK (C.D. Cal. Feb. 16, 2016)
02/16/2016Court granted in part and denied in part motion to compel arbitration, finding that arbitration agreement that excluded Title VII claims did not exclude similar state law claims, and was neither procedurally or substantively unconscionable.
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HTG Capital Partners, LLC v. John Doe 1, A, B, and C, No. 15 C 02129 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 16, 2016)02/16/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted and action dismissed without prejudice; all parties were party to arbitration agreement; since arbitration agreement includes anonymity provision, court also grants motion to proceed anonymously as to court action, but arbitrator to decide on anonymity for the arbitration proceeding.
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Patriot Oilfield Services, LLC v. Greenhunter Water, LLC, No. 1:15CV32 (N.D. W.Va. Feb. 16, 2016)02/16/2016
Motion to dismiss granted; court found it prudent to grant the motion to dismiss based on improper venue.
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Scottsdale Insurance Co. v. John Deere Insurance Co., No. 2:15-CV-15-00671-PHX-PGR (D. Ariz. Feb. 16, 2016)02/16/2016
Motion to correct arbitration award denied, cross-motion to confirm award granted. Since an error is not obvious, the court would have to engage in impermissible speculation to reach a conclusion that there is a miscalculation.
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Bernard v. Kabco Builders, Inc., No. 1:15-CV-02023 (W.D. La. Feb. 12, 2016)02/12/2016
Magistrate Judge recommended, and court later granted defendants’ first and supplemental motions to compel arbitration, finding that there were valid arbitration agreements that covered all of plaintiff’s claims. Court found: (1) that the federal Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act does not prohibit binding arbitration of express warranty claims and therefore one of the arbitration agreements at issue was valid; and (2) a second arbitration agreement in question was not adhesionary because none of the factors taken into consideration (physical characteristics, non-concealment of the agreement, mutuality, and relative difference in bargaining positions) were indicative of such an agreement.
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Bynum v. Maplebear, Inc., No. 1:15-CV-06263-JBW-CLP (E.D.N.Y. Feb. 12, 2016)02/12/2016
Court granted motion to compel arbitration and stayed proceedings, finding that arbitration agreement’s venue, fee-splitting, and fee-sharing provisions were unconscionable but severable.
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Sanato v. Sears, Roebuck and Co., No. 1:15-CV-07486 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 11, 2016)02/11/2016
Court denied defendant’s motion to compel arbitration under the FAA. Plaintiff argued that he sent defendant a form opting out of arbitration, but defendant argued that it never received such a form. Court found that plaintiff raised a genuine issue concerning whether he agreed to arbitrate, which precludes arbitration under the FAA.
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Jones v American Credit Acceptance LLC, No. 15-CV-8163 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 11, 2016)02/11/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted; court finds dispute at issue falls within scope of arbitration agreement.
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Chad McAllister v. Alan Halls, No. 2:15-CV-15-02204-PHX-DLR (D. Ariz. Feb. 11, 2016)02/11/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted; arbitration agreement delegated gateway issues of arbitrability to arbitrator.
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Rubel v. Acclaim Fin. Group, LLC, No. 6:15-CV-859-MHS (E.D. Tex. Feb. 10, 2016)02/10/2016
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration. Court held that the parties’ agreement to arbitrate disputes arising out of matters related to their agreement was valid and that plaintiff’s claims fell within the scope of the plain language of the agreement’s arbitration provision.
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Unite Here Local 100 v. Westchester Hills Golf Club, Inc., No. 1:15-CV-01203-LTS (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 10, 2016)02/10/2016
Court granted motion to confirm, and denied motion to vacate, arbitral award, finding that arbitrator did not exceed his powers or incorrectly fail to consider mitigation in calculating damages.
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Guidotti v. Legal Helpers Debt Resolution, No. 1:11-CV-01219 (3d Cir. Feb. 10, 2016)02/10/2016
Circuit court vacated order of district court declining to compel arbitration and remanded for further fact-finding. Court held that record was insufficiently developed for it to decide whether the FAA preempted state law affecting arbitrability of the dispute.
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Farina Focaccia & Cucina Italiana, LLC v. 700 Valencia Street, LLC, Nos. 15-CV-02286-JCS, 15-CV-04931-JCS (N.D. Cal. Feb. 10, 2016)02/10/2016
Motions to consolidate and to compel arbitration denied. The arbitration agreement at issue is not governed by the FAA, but rather the California Arbitration Act, which permits the court to determine whether the right to arbitrate has been waived by a party.
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Davis v BSH Home Appliances Corp., No. 4:15-CV-103-FL (E.D.N.C. Feb. 10, 2016)02/10/2016
Motion to compel arbitration denied; defendant could not establish the validity of the arbitration agreement’s delegation clause.
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Golden v. Lim, No. 2:15-CV-10795 (E.D. Mich., Feb. 10, 2016)02/10/2016
Arbitral award confirmed. Respondent’s motion to vacate primarily rests on the court correcting alleged legal or factual errors in the arbitral award, which the court cannot do when asked to confirm or vacate an award.
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Roy v. Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra Soc’y, Inc., No. 1:15-CV-00283-MAT-HBS (W.D.N.Y. Feb. 9, 2016)02/09/2016
Court denied motion to vacate, and granted motion to confirm, arbitral award, finding that (1) arbitrator did not refuse to hear pertinent evidence; (2) arbitrator did not decide non-arbitrable issues; (3) plaintiff had the opportunity to raise his allegations of fraud and witness perjury at the hearing; and (4) there is no public policy that protects an employee with limited job prospects (in this case, a professional orchestral musician) from discharge for just cause.
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Strain v. Murphy Oil USA, Inc., No. 6:15-CV-3246-MDH (W.D. Mo. Feb. 9, 2016)02/09/2016
Defendant’s motion to dismiss granted; all issues raised by the plaintiff are subject to arbitration.
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Littlejohn v. Timberquest Park At Magic, LLC, No. 5:14-CV-200 (D. Vt. Feb. 9, 2016)02/09/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted; parties’ exchange of motions regarding the exculpatory clause of an arbitration agreement is not the type of extensive pre-trial litigation that constitutes a waiver of arbitration.
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Moton v. Maplebear Inc., No. 15 Civ. 8879 (CM) (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 9, 2016)02/09/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted; court finds arbitration agreement to be valid and enforceable and plaintiff’s claims to be arbitrable under the agreement.
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Sutherland Global Services, Inc. v. Adam Technologies International SA de C.V., No. 15-1063-CV (2d Cir. Feb. 9, 2016)02/09/2016
District court’s order confirming an arbitration award affirmed.
See also Sutherland Global Services, Inc. v. Adam Technologies International SA de C.V., No. 12-CV-06439 (W.D.N.Y. Mar. 21, 2016)
In light of the second circuit's affirmation of the court's decision and order confirming an arbitration award in favor of the plaintiff, court granted plaintiff's motion to compel responses to its post-judgment discovery demands on the defendant pursuant to FRCP Rule 69. -
Walsh v. Zazzali, No. 8:15-CV-01970-JVS-JCG (C.D. Cal. Feb. 8, 2016)02/08/2016
Court denied motion to compel arbitration. Court held that defendant’s claims were not eligible for arbitration before FINRA because defendant was not a “customer,” was not assigned the claims at issue and therefore lacked standing, and waived his right to compel arbitration by litigating claims based on the same underlying conduct at issue.
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Wright v. SunTrust Bank, Inc., No. 15-1365 (3d Cir. Feb. 8, 2016)02/08/2016
Circuit court affirmed district court dismissal of plaintiff’s claims against defendant and denial of his motion to compel arbitration where claims against a successor were not subject to mandatory arbitration.
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Dalon v. Ruleville Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, LLC, No. 4:15–CV–00086–DMB–JMV (N.D. Miss. Feb. 8, 2016)02/08/2016
Motion to compel arbitration denied; court finds allegations of lack of capacity and unconscionability create questions about the making of the arbitration agreement that should be dealt with by the court.
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Ggnsc Altoona Hillview LP v. Martz, No. 3:15-32 (W.D. Pa. Feb. 8, 2016)02/08/2016
Motion to dismiss granted based on issue preclusion. Court finds that because a state court already decided the issue of whether the state law tort claims must be compelled to arbitration under the FAA, plaintiffs are precluded from relitigating that issue in federal court.
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Dent v. Encana Oil & Gas, Inc., No. 1:15-CV-01800-CMA (D. Colo. February 7, 2016)02/07/2016
Court granted in part and denied in part defendant’s motion to compel arbitration. Court denied defendant’s motion to compel arbitration as moot where plaintiff agreed his claims must be arbitrated and had, in fact, initiated arbitration. Court denied defendant’s request for an order finding plaintiff’s collective and class action claims were not permitted to proceed in arbitration where the arbitration clause in the parties’ agreement authorized the arbitrator to interpret the agreement and make those determinations.
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Trustees of Empire State Carpenters Annuity, Apprenticeship, Labor-Management Cooperation, Pension and Welfare Funds v. Oneidaview Pile Driving Inc., No. 2:15-CV-03357-JS-AKT (E.D.N.Y. Feb. 5, 2016)02/05/2016
Magistrate judge recommended that motion to confirm arbitration award be granted, along with attorney fees and costs, but denied without prejudice petitioners’ request for prejudgment interest pending further documentation.
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GIB, LLC v. Salon Ware, Inc., No. 14-55399 (9th Cir. Feb. 5, 2016)02/05/2016
District court's grant of the appellee's motion to compel arbitration reversed and remanded; court erred in not resolving the appellant's challenge to the validity of the arbitration agreement.
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North American Composites Company v Reich, No. 15-CV-3537 (PJS/JJK) (D. Minn. Feb. 5, 2016)02/05/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted. Court held that it may resolve a specific challenge to a delegation provision, but a challenge to the arbitration agreement or entire contract is for the arbitrator to resolve.
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Candies Shipbuilders, LLC v. Westport INS. Corp., No. 15-1798 (E.D. La. Feb. 5, 2016)02/05/2016
Third-party defendant’s motion seeking a stay of a third-party’s complaint and referral of claim to arbitration granted; the arbitration agreement at issue was valid and the controversy at issue was within the scope of the agreement.
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Espinoza v. Galardi South Enterprises, Inc., No. 14-21244-CIV-GOODMAN (S.D. Fla. Feb. 5, 2016)02/05/2016
Motion to stay litigation granted pending resolution of interlocutory appeal on the non-enforcement of an arbitration agreement.
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Fernandez v. Windmill Distributing Co., No. 1:12-CV-01968 (S.D.N.Y. Feb. 4, 2016)02/04/2016
Motion to dismiss rejected. A union-negotiated collective bargaining agreement (CBA) cannot waive rights to bring a federal statutory claim in a judicial forum unless that waiver is clear and unmistakable. Since the CBA at issue did not explicitly reference the statutory rights subject to arbitration the CBA did not waive the right to bring these claims in federal court.
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Ostrom v Worldventures Marketing LLC, No. 12-213-JJB-RLB (M.D. LA, Feb. 4, 2016)02/04/2016
Arbitration award confirmed by court, finding that arbitrator was not evidently partial, alleged misconduct of arbitrator did not warrant vacatur of award, and arbitrator did not exceed its authority.
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Didio v. Jones, No. 2:13-CV-04949-PSG-AGR (C.D. Cal. Feb. 3, 2016)02/03/2016
Court granted plaintiffs’ application to confirm arbitrator’s finding and award. Court rejected defendant’s argument that arbitrator exceeded its powers by failing to reach decision by a set date, when arbitration agreement said only that arbitration must take place by set not, not that a decision must be reached by such date.
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Middlesex Hosp. v. On Assignment Staffing Servs., Inc., 3:14-CV-1138 (AWT) (D. Conn. Feb. 3, 2016)02/03/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted and action stayed pending conclusion of arbitration. Agreement to arbitrate survived termination of original staffing agreement notwithstanding merger clause of subsequent staffing agreement without arbitration provision.
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Dykes v. Cleveland Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, No. 4:15-CV-00076-DMB-JMV (N.D. Miss. Feb. 3, 2016)02/03/2016
Motion to compel arbitration denied. Surrogate for deceased lacked authority to bind the decedent to the arbitration agreement because decedent had capacity at the time the arbitration agreement was entered into.
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Guarnero v. Sail Funding Trust II, No. 0:15-CV-62092-BB (S.D. Fla. Feb. 2, 2016)02/02/2016
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration finding that there was a valid contract, despite discrepancies in the agreement and fraud allegations. Court also found that plaintiff was bound by the agreement despite not being a signatory due to principles of agency, contract law, and the agreement’s plain language. Court also found that the claims at issue could be outside the scope of the agreement containing the arbitration clause, but ultimately decided that the arbitration panel should make that determination.
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J.D. Fields & Co., Inc. v. Nucor-Yamato Steel Co. and Nucor Corp., No. 4:12-CV-00754 (E.D. Ark. Feb. 2, 2016)02/02/2016
Court grants motion to compel arbitration filed by a non-signatory to the agreement having previously found that the signatory had waived its right to arbitrate. Court holds that non-signatory defendant had not waived its right to arbitrate and, having brought claims against the non-signatory under the agreement, plaintiff is estopped from denying non-signatory’s right to enforce the arbitration clause.
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Rosenhaus v. Jackson, No. 2:14-CV-03154-MWF-JCG (C.D. Cal. Feb. 2, 2016)02/02/2016
Court granted cross-petition to vacate arbitration award and denied petition to confirm arbitration award since arbitrator failed to disclose that he previously served as an arbitrator (and received fees) in a dispute involving one of the parties and was aware of facts reasonably giving the impression that he might be appointed to serve as an arbitrator in future disputes involving that party.
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Hayes v. Delbert Services Corp., Nos. 15–1170, 15–1217. (4th Cir. Feb. 2, 2016)02/02/2016
Order of district court reversed and remanded. Arbitration agreement at issue held to be unenforceable because it forbids the arbitrator from applying applicable state and federal law “to game the entire system.”
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Bradford Square Nursing, LLC v. Cornett, No. 3:15-CV-00055-GFVT (E.D. Ky. Feb. 2, 2016)02/02/2016
Motion to enforce arbitration agreement and enjoin defendant denied; question of whether alleged incompetency of signatory to arbitration agreement voids the agreement is a question of contract formation that should be determined by the court, not by an arbitrator.
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PR Group, LLC v. Windmill International, Ltd., No. 14-0401-CV-W-BP (W.D. Mo. Feb. 1, 2016)02/01/2016
Motion to compel arbitration and stay action granted; arbitration clause was not unconscionable because of reference to non-existent "Arbitration Society in London." FAA empowered the court to order the arbitration to be administered by the AAA, and the AAA should determine whether this is an "international matter" or a "US Matter," based on criteria set forth in Art. 1 of the UNCITRAL Arbitration Rules.
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Crawl v. Experian Information Solutions, Inc., No. 8:15-CV-00097-PJM (D. Md. Jan. 29, 2016)01/29/2016
Court granted a defendant’s motion to compel arbitration and dismissed the case because all of Crawl’s claims—under the Fair Credit Reporting Act and state law for defamation—were subject to arbitration. Court found that the original terms of contract for plaintiff’s credit card contained a valid arbitration agreement that the plaintiff did not opt out of.
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Sanchez v. MK Industries, Inc., No. 1:15-CV- 272-HSO-JCG (S.D. Miss. Jan. 29, 2016)01/29/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted, and case dismissed because all claims presented to the court were arbitrable and would be decided by the arbitrators.
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743809 Ontario, Inc. v. Cars of Manheim, LLC, No. 9:15-MC-81346-WPD (S.D. Fla. Jan. 28, 2016)01/28/2016
Court granted plaintiff’s motion to confirm the arbitration award. Court explained that in the eleventh circuit, Sections 10 and 11 of the FAA set forth the exclusive grounds for vacating, correcting, or modifying an arbitration award. Since defendant was arguing for vacatur on grounds of (i) excess of power, (ii) manifest disregard of the law, (iii) arbitrary and capriciousness, and (iv) violation of public policy, three of the four grounds were legally meritless, and its remaining claim on excess of powers was unavailing as long as the arbitrator was “arguably construing” the contract.
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Zurich American Insurance Co. v. Team Tankers A.S., No. 14-CV-4036 (2d Cir. Jan. 28, 2016)01/28/2016
District court’s order confirming an arbitration award upheld, but order awarding attorney's fees and costs vacated.
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Streamline Consulting Group LLC v. Legacy Carbon LLC, No. 15-00318 SOM/KSC (D. Haw. Jan. 27, 2016)01/27/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted but court retains jurisdiction on question as to which parties are covered by the arbitration agreement.
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RX Pros, Inc. v. CVS Health Corp, Civ. No. 16-0061 (W.D. La. Jan. 26, 2016)01/26/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted and state court’s temporary restraining order is dissolved; incorporation of rules requiring the arbitration of arbitrability is clear and unmistakable evidence that arbitrators should decide arbitrability.
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Brendel v. Meyrowitz, No. 3:15-CV-1928-D (N.D. Tex. Jan. 25, 2016)01/25/2016
Motion to compel arbitration granted; defendants did not waive their rights to arbitration by filing an answer in state court that did not raise arbitration defense.
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Uchikura v. Yoshida Business Solutions, LLC, No. 3:15-CV-2007-AC (D. Or. Jan. 25, 2016)01/25/2016
Arbitration warranted because all but one of the plaintiff’s claims were encompassed by an arbitration agreement; any remaining questions can be determined by the court after an arbitral award is issued.