Arbitration

In James v. Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC, 2015 WL 720195 (N.D.Cal. 2015), Judge Whyte found that a debt collector sued in an FDCPA class action could enforce the arbitration clause to send the case to arbitration despite the fact that the debt collector already had sued the the debtor in state court on the debt. James brought this class action… Read More

In Hernandez v. W.R. Thomas, Inc., 2015 WL 112799 (Cal.App. 4 Dist. 2015), the Court of Appeal found in an unpublished decision that a consumer failed to meet its burden of demonstrating that the arbitration clause found in the standard for automobile RISC was unconscionable. After considering these submissions, the court issued an order scheduling an evidentiary hearing “on the limited issue… Read More

In Dalton v. Santander Consumer USA, Inc., --- P.3d ----, 2014 WL 7463867 (N.M.App. 2015), the New Mexico Court of Appeal found that an arbitration clause an automobile RISC was unconscionable, and that the unconscionability analysis was not preempted by the FAA. A recent decision of a federal court applying California's unconscionability doctrine to an arbitration scheme identical to that in this… Read More

In McGill v. Citibank, N.A., --- Cal.Rptr.3d ----, 2014 WL 7202035 (Cal.App. 4 Dist. 2014), the California Court of Appeal held that Concepcion overruled California’s Broughton-Cruz rule. Citibank petitioned to compel McGill to arbitrate her claims based on an arbitration provision in her account agreement. The trial court granted the petition on McGill's claims for monetary damages and restitution, but… Read More

In Barnes v. Bakersfield Dodge, Inc., 2014 WL 5392963 (Cal.App. 5 Dist. 2014), the Court of Appeal found in an unpublished decision that a previous order finding that a car dealer had waived its right to arbitrate a class-action plaintiffs’ claim did not mean that the car dealer had waived its right to arbitrate the claims of members of the… Read More

In Decker v. Advanced Call Center Technologies, LLC, 2014 WL 4976771 (W.D.Mich. 2014), Judge Quist entitled a Debt Collector accused of "Flat Rating" to enforce an Arbitration Clause in a Credit Card Agreement. The Court finds that there was a valid agreement to arbitrate. The Bank mailed Decker a copy of the Agreement with her credit card, and she accepted its terms by activating… Read More

In Inetianbor v. CashCall, Inc., --- F.3d ----, 2014 WL 4922225 (11th Cir. 2014), the Court of Appeals for the 11th Circuit found that an arbitration clause requiring a consumer to submit his claim to an authorized tribal arbitrator could not be enforced when the Tribe refused to authorize a tribal leader to arbitrate. To decide whether the forum selection… Read More

In Fischer v. Rent-A-Center, Inc., 2014 WL 3729553 (E.D.Cal. 2014), Judge England ordered a TCPA and Rosenthal Act claim to Arbitration. Judge England found the TCPA claim within the scope of the Arbitration Agreement. Plaintiff opposes Defendant's Motion on the grounds that Defendant has not established that its repeated calls to Plaintiff were in any way related to the loan… Read More

In Delgado v. Progress Financial Co., 2014 WL 1756282 (E.D.Cal. 2014), Judge O’Neill ordered a Plaintiff’s TCPA and FDCPA claims to arbitration. Mr. Delgado does not dispute that he signed the Arbitration Agreement at the time he applied for a loan from Progreso Financiero; nor does he dispute the validity of the agreement. Doc. 14 at 2. Mr. Delgado argues,… Read More

In Gillespie v. Svale Del Grande, Inc., 2014 WL 1509813 (Cal.App. 6 Dist. 2014), the Sixth District Court of Appeal found that Concepcion trumped the CLRA’s anti-class action waiver, but remanded the matter to the superior court to determine whether other unconscionable provisions could be severed. In this case, pursuant to Concepcion, supra, 131 S.Ct. 1740, we determine that the… Read More

In Imburgia v. DIRECTV, Inc.--- Cal.Rptr.3d ----, 2014 WL 1347748 (Cal.App. 2 Dist. 2014), the Court of Appeal found that an arbitration clause that determined enforceability of a class action waiver by reference to state law was not inconsistent with Concepcion, and found the class action waiver prohibited by the CLRA. In addition to stating that the parties waive their rights… Read More

In Greene v. Alliance Automotive, Inc., --- S.W.3d ----, 2014 WL 928859 (Mo.App. W.D. 2014), the Missouri Court of Appeal affirmed in an unpublished decision a trial court’s striking down of an arbitration clause in an automobile retail installment sales contract.  The court reviewed a videotape of the closing of the sale by the dealer, and found that the Customer… Read More

A copy of Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye's order is here. Read More

In Mendoza v. Ad Astra Recovery Services Inc., 2014 WL 47777 (C.D.Cal. 2014), Judge Snyder ordered a TCPA class action to arbitration.  The facts were as follows: On September 9, 2013, plaintiff Miguel Mendoza filed this putative class action against defendant Ad Astra Recovery Services, Inc. (“Ad Astra”) on behalf of himself and all others similarly situated. Plaintiff asserts claims… Read More

In Castellanos v. Quality Nissan, Inc., 2013 WL 6234205 (Cal. App. 4 Dist. 2013), the Fourth District Court of Appeal, Division Three in an unpublished decision found the standard form RISC arbitration clause to be unconscionable, and affirmed the trial court’s denial of the dealership’s petition to compel arbitration.  The Court of Appeal mentioned, in particular, the issue with the appellate procedure… Read More

In Whaley v. T-Mobile, USA, Inc., 2013 WL 5155342 (E.D.Ky. 2013), Judge Bunning ordered a TCPA/Unintended Recipient case to arbitration based on an arbitration clause that the defendant actually had with the recipient on an unrelated account.  Beginning in July 2012 T–Mobile used an automatic dialing system to call plaintiff regarding a debt purportedly owed by a third person, Thomas… Read More

In Gonzalez v. Metro Nissan of Redlands, 2013 WL 4858770 (Cal.App. 4 Dist. 2013), an unpublished decision, the Court of Appeal entered the Sanchez fray, and came down on the side of enforcing the arbitration clause in the LawPrinting RISC.   "Because we have no guidance from the Supreme Court, and because we cannot rely on the decisions of our sister courts,… Read More

In Richards v. Ernst & Young, LLP, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held in an employment case that the Defendant did not waive its right to compel arbitration by litigating the case during the years before the Supreme Court decided Concepcion.  The Plaintiff could not establish any prejudice from the delay in moving to compel -- one of… Read More

In Green v. U.S. Cash Advance Illinois, LLC, --- F.3d ----, 2013 WL 3880219 (7th Cir. 2013), the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that the FAA requires a district judge to appoint an arbitrator if when the arbitrator designated by the parties was unavailable, and the choice of arbitrator was no so important that the whole contract… Read More

In Gillette v. First Premier Bank, 2013 WL 3205827 (S.D.Cal. 2013), Plaintiff's counsel employed a strategy purportedly designed to secure a waiver of arbitration clause.  Plaintiff filed a small-value Rosenthal Act claim and settled it with the defendant.  However, Plaintiff also had filed a federal class action under Penal Code 632 -- California's call recording statute.  Defendant moved to compel arbitration of… Read More