Tag: Arbitration

Two for the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court announced that it has granted review in two more cases. In one case, the Court granted certification, while in the other the Court granted leave to appeal. In Crystal Point Condominium Ass’n, Inc. v. Kinsale Ins. Co., ...

When an Arbitrator Acts as a Settlement Mediator During the Arbitration

PAMI Realty, LLC v. Locations XIX, Inc., ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2021). This opinion, authored by Judge Gummer, laid out the facts, issues, and the panel’s ruling in the first three paragraphs of the decision: “The issue on ...

Arbitrator’s Interpretation of Labor Agreement Was “Reasonably Debatable” and Should Have Been Upheld

Borough of Carteret v. Firefighters Mutual Benevolent Ass’n, Local 67, ___ N.J. ___ (2021). Under longstanding Supreme Court of New Jersey precedent, an arbitrator’s interpretation of a labor contract is to be upheld as long as that interpretation is “reasonably ...

Apparent Authority Must be Manifested by a Communication of the Principal, Not of the Agent

Gayles v. Sky Zone Trampoline Park, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2021). Here is how Judge Messano began his opinion for the Appellate Division today: “Joan Tongol invited several friends of her minor son to celebrate his birthday at ...

Attorneys Whose Retainer Agreements Include Mandatory Arbitration for Malpractice Claims or Fee Disputes Must Explain the Arbitration Clause to the Client Up Front

Delaney v. Dickey, ___ N.J. ___ (2020). Justice Albin’s opinion for a unanimous Supreme Court in this case today is an important one for attorneys and their clients. The Court held that if an attorney includes in a retainer agreement ...

Where a Party Denies Agreeing to Arbitration, a Court, Not an Arbitrator, Must Decide Threshold Issues of the Validity of the Agreement

Knight v. Vivint Solar Developer, LLC, ___ N.J. Super. ___ (App. Div. 2020). In Goffe v. Foulke Mangagement Corp., 238 N.J. 191 (2019), the Supreme Court ruled that threshold issues as to the validity of a contract that contained an ...

The “Queen of All Threshold Issues” in Arbitration Law

MZM Construction Co., Inc. v. New Jersey Building Laborers Statewide Benefit Funds, 974 F.3d 386 (3d Cir. 2020). Decisions about arbitration just keep on coming, from both New Jersey and federal courts. This latest opinion, by Judge Restrepo, addresses what ...

Arbitration Clause is Enforceable Despite Absence of Specified Arbitration Forum

Flanzman v. Jenny Craig, Inc., 244 N.J. 119 (2020). As discussed here, the Appellate Division in this employment discrimination case held that an arbitration provision that did not specify a forum or process for the arbitration did not reflect a ...

Employer’s Arbitration Provision Enforceable Even Though Employer Labeled it a “Training Module,” Since Employee Understood She Was Agreeing to Arbitration

Skuse v. Pfizer, Inc., 244 N.J. 30 (2020). As discussed here, the Appellate Division in this case reversed a trial level ruling that compelled the plaintiff employee to arbitrate a dispute that she had with her employer, Pfizer. Pfizer had ...

New Jersey Arbitration Act Applies Automatically to Contracts Exempt From Federal Arbitration Act

Arafa v. Health Express Corp., 243 N.J. 147 (2020). Justice Fernandez-Vina’s opinion today actually involved two consolidated cases, both of which were putative class actions. The issue was whether a contract that the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. 1 et ...