By Andy Volin The Tenth Circuit just ruled that an arbitration agreement between a massage student and her school was not enforceable, because it would not permit the effective vindication of the student’s statutory rights. Nesbitt v. FCNH, Inc., No. 14-1502 (10th Cir. Jan. 5, 2016). The dispute involved a massage student’s claim that, when […]
Tag: Arbitration Agreement
Chinese Arbitration Pact Enforced
By Lori Phillips Modern Space, located in Shanghai, China, extended to Plaintiff a written offer of employment setting out basic terms, including the requirement that the parties enter a separate, written employment contract (“Labor Contract”). The Labor Contract included an arbitration provision requiring any dispute arising under the contract to be submitted to arbitration within […]
Another Win for FLSA Class Action Waiver
By Lori Phillips In Porreca v. Rose Group, No. 13-1674 (E.D. Penn. Dec. 11, 2013), an employee attempted to bring class claims for violations of the wage and hour provisions of the FLSA against its restaurant employer in federal court. The restaurant moved to compel arbitration, and the employee fought it, arguing that the arbitration […]
Court Nixes Non-Appealability Clause in Arbitration Agreement
By Lori Phillips Generally speaking, arbitration is a matter of contract, and arbitration agreements must be enforced according to their terms. The Ninth Circuit recently issued a caveat, however. In In re Wal-Mart Wage & Hour Employment Practices Litigation, No. 11-17718 (9th Cir. Dec. 17, 2013), an issue of first impression, the Ninth Circuit held […]
Surprise! Shocker! Court invalidates arbitration agreement…
…with “surprise” terms that “shock the conscience.” By Lori Phillips In Chavarria v. Ralphs Grocery Co., No. 11-56673 (9th Cir. Oct. 28, 2013), the Ninth Circuit shot down an employer’s motion to compel arbitration because it found the arbitration agreement both procedurally and substantively unconscionable under California contract law. In addition to the “take it […]
Form Or Substance
By Bill Wright In a much-anticipated case the U.S. Supreme Court today reached a decidedly unremarkable conclusion. The gist of the U.S. Supreme Court’s new decision on class action arbitration agreements is old hat—courts may overturn an arbitrator’s decision under the Federal Arbitration Act only if the arbitrator acts outside the authority granted in the […]
Federal Court Ignores Supreme Court Guidance on Collective Action Arbitration
A federal district court in Idaho chose to follow the NLRB, instead of the Supreme Court and several U.S. Circuit Courts of Appeals, on the hot topic of collective action arbitration. Brown v. Citicorp, No. 1:12-CV-00062 (D. Idaho Feb. 21, 2013). The court reviewed an arbitration agreement between an employer and employee. In the agreement, […]