ONCALL
...PreTrial Adjudication
......Contract Arbitration
45 Cards On This Topic:

Error not to vacate arbitration award where plaintiff showed that arbitrator failed to disclose he was the neutral in four cases involving defendant's counsel.

Motion to compel arbitration correctly denied where illegal PAGA waiver clause could not be severed from the balance of the arbitration agreement.

Integration clause in residential care agreement did not render later-signed arbitration clause invalid.

Wife could not be compelled to arbitrate her loss of consortium claim where she was not a signatory to arbitration agreement signed by husband.

D's motion to compel arbitration based on parties' arbitration agreement properly denied where P's lawsuit had nothing to do with his rights and responsibilities as a driver for D.

Arbitrator has no power to determine whether a nonsignatory to an arbitration agreement can be compelled to arbitration; this question is for the trial ct.

Motion to compel arbitration properly denied where court could properly determine specific challenge to validity of clause delegating issue of enforceability of arbitration agreement to arbitrator.

Plaintiff's financial circumstances were relevant to whether arbitration proceeded at defendants' expense, or whether matter was tried in superior court.

Arbitration award based upon one of the parties' ex parte brief to the arbitration panel was procured by undue means and must be vacated.

An incremental arbitration award confirmation process can be appropriate where not all issues are resolved at the time of the initial partial award confirmation.

The Ralph Act and Bane Act are preempted by the FAA to the extent they condition the enforceability of arbitration agreements on compliance with special requirements not generally applicable to contracts.

Trial ct. erred under EC §703.5 when it admitted part of an appraiser's declaration in challenge of confirmation of an appraisal award.

MICRA does not bind a decedent's heirs to decedent's arbitration agreement in a case for wrongful death caused by elder abuse.

Class action waiver in arbitration agreement held invalid under the four Gentry factors.

The FAA exempts contracts of employment of seamen, railroad employees or other classes of workers, i.e., transportation workers, engaged in foreign or interstate commerce.

Petition to vacate arbitration award untimely when served and filed 125 days after service of award.

Arbitration award confirmed where plaintiff, through his conduct, clearly and unequivocally consented to have the arbitrator decide whether the dispute was subject to arbitration.

Where plaintiff-employee accepted an offer from defendant-employer during arbitration and dismissed his individual claims with prejudice, employee no longer had standing to sue employer under PAGA.

The Federal Arbitration Act does not allow arbitrators to compel the production of documents from third parties outside of a hearing.

An order granting a motion to arbitrate is not appealable; writ review of order is appropriate in some circumstances.

Trial ct. erred in ordering arbitration of employee's Private Attorney General Act (PAGA) claims, and further ordering that underpaid wage claims be arbitrated as a representative action.

Employee can't be compelled to arbitrate claim against defendant where his employer entered into arbitration agreement with defendant.

Arbitration agreement unenforceable where attorney-in-fact exceeded authority under power of attorney.

Under the federal McCarran-Ferguson Act, Nebraska law applied to preempt the Federal Arbitration Act and invalidated parties' arbitration clause.

Whether parties have submitted an issue to arbitration is for the court to decide unless the parties clearly and unmistakably provide otherwise.

Arbitration agreement unconscionable where it limited employee's ability to conduct discovery, instituted procedures that shortened statute of limitations and did not allow for prelitigation FEHA investigation.

A party that invites a trial ct. to commit an error cannot later challenge that error on appeal.

A party to an arbitration agreement may elect to initiate a civil action rather than an arbitration proceeding.

Where part of an arbitration award cannot be confirmed due to the arbitrator’s error of law, the award may be corrected by striking the erroneous part if doing so does not affect the merits of the part that remains.

Employer waived its right to compel arbitration with employees-class members where it withdrew its earlier motion to compel arbitration against employee-named plaintiff for strategic reasons.

Arbitration award can operate as res judicata bar to subsequent lawsuit by plaintiff asserting same causes of action against additional defendant who is in privity with original defendant as its licensee.

Waiver of employee-friendly Labor Code wage claim provisions in arbitration agreement did not make it unconscionable where procedure was affordable and accessible.

Order to compel arbitration of employee's Labor Code claims seeking to enforce wage order was proper even where collective bargaining agreement did not mention Labor Code.

Court erred in compelling arbitration of employee's claims for payments upon separation from employment and unfair competition where claims were irrelevant to wage order.

Denial of arbitration of class claims proper where there was no intent in collective bargaining agreement to arbitrate such claims.

Court of Appeal may treat appeal from an unappealable attorney fees order as a petition for writ of mandate in extraordinary circumstances.

Arbitration award vacated where arbitrator exceeded authority in arbitration agreement by awarding defendant lost profits based on an alleged contractual agreement.

An arbitrator's decision may be reviewed for errors of fact or law if the arbitration agreement so provides.

Arbitration agreement containing 30-day rescission period under CCP §1295(c) was effective upon execution such that one signatory's death during this period did not render agreement unenforceable.

CA procedure applies to a motion to compel arbitration where arbitration agreement is governed by FAA but is silent as to choice of law and does not state FAA procedure applies.

An order denying a renewed motion under CCP §1008(b) is not appealable.

An order granting a petition to compel arbitration is not appealable.

Nonsignatory to arbitration agreement may compel arbitration of alleged Labor Code violations under the doctrines of equitable estoppel and agency.

A predispute arbitration agreement that waives the right to seek public injunctive relief in any forum is unenforceable under CA law.

As law firm violated Rule 3-310 by representing D and P at the same time, with neither disclosure nor informed written consent, trial court erred by enforcing firm and D's K and entering judgment on arbitration award.