California Code Of Civil Procedure Section 1298, Applying To Real Estate Purchase Agreements, Is Preempted By The FAA In Transactions Involving Interstate Commerce. Plaintiff Loeffler appealed from a judgment entered after the trial court confirmed an arbitration award in favor of plaintiff Shea Homes Limited Partnership. The award resulted in rescission of Loeffler’s purchase […]
The Article Is About Two Extraordinary Cases In Which Judges Exercised The Summary Contempt Power. Thanks to the generous permission of California Litigation, The Journal of The Litigation Section, State Bar of California, “Summary Contempt and Due Process: England, 1631, California, 1888” is now available on my website by clicking here. An abbreviated […]
Denying All Discovery In Arbitration Of Professional Malpractice Claims Is Unconscionable. Surgery scalpels. 1878. Library of Congress. The Second District, Division Four, has affirmed the trial court’s finding of unconscionability, but concludes that unconscionability may be cured through severance in an arbitration of professional malpractice claims. Lateral Link Group v. BLA Schwartz, Case […]
How To Avoid Drafting An Unconscionable Arbitration Agreement. We usually summarize opinions, but here, the Court of Appeal does a good job itself of summing up how to draft an enforceable arbitration provision in an employment agreement. The case is Woods v. JFK Memorial Hospital, Inc., G050286 (4/3 Oct. 30, 2014) (Moore, Rylaarsdam, Thompson) […]
Arbitrator Did Not Exceed Powers Or Commit Misconduct. We see many cases in which a party seeks to vacate an award on the grounds the arbitrator exceeded his or her powers. This is usually an uphill battle, as it was in our next case. The plaintiff received an arbitrator’s award in the amount […]
It Helps To Be Able To Identify The Parties To An Arbitration Agreement ! As the next case illustrates, sometimes the basics can trip one up when it comes to enforcing an arbitration agreement. Plaintiff filed a complaint alleging medical malpractice related to her sister’s death after lap band surgery. Defendants – a […]
Result Follows Iskanian, And Court Of Appeal’s Disposition Provides Trial Court With Roadmap For Trying The PAGA Claim. The Supreme Court directed the 6th District to vacate its previous decision in Brown v. Superior Court, 216 Cal.App.4th 1302 (2013), and to reconsider in light of Iskanian v. CLS Transportation Los Angeles, LLC, 59 Cal.4th […]
Waiver Of Arbitration Results In Affirmance Of Denial Of Petition To Arbitrate. The Court of Appeal affirmed denial of a petition to compel arbitration, finding substantial evidence to support appellant’s waiver of a right to arbitrate its dispute. LPT Properties, LLC v. Wystein Opportunity Fund, LLC et al., G048803 (4/3 Oct. 21, 2014) (Fybel, […]
Also, Settlement Documents May Be Admitted For Purposes Other Than Proving Liability. While documents subject to the mediation privilege may be inadmissible as evidence, an error in admitting the documents into evidence will not matter to the Court of Appeal, if admission of the evidence resulted in harmless error. That was the case in […]
Arbitrator Did Not Exceed Jurisdiction Because Awards Ruling On Access To Records Did Not Violate Public Policy. Sometimes the Court’s weariness with a dispute drips onto the page as in this description of an appeal from judgments entered after the trial court denied petitions “to vacate the most recent arbitration awards in a decade-long […]