A collection of the most recent US international arbitration decisions is available here. Decisions can be quickly retrieved by using the filter tools below.
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Foundation Church Inc. v. Independent Specialty Insurance Company, No. 23-CV-02847-CEH-J_S (M.D. Fla. Apr. 11, 2024)04/11/2024
Court granted motion to compel arbitration and stay the case pending arbitration where the parties’ insurance contract contained an arbitration clause, and the four jurisdictional factors were satisfied under the New York Convention.
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Nemo Digital Holdings Corp. v. XYZ Financial Markets LLC, No. 2:24-CV-00737-EP-JSA (D.N.J. Apr. 11, 2024)04/11/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration on the grounds that plaintiff alleged the entire agreement between the parties was procured by fraud but did not specifically argue that the arbitration agreement was procured by fraud. Court denied defendants’ motion for attorneys’ fees, reasoning that it could not determine who was considered a prevailing party at that stage, considering the opinion was a preliminary procedural order.
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Fli-Lo Falcon LLC v. Amazon.com, Inc., No. 22-35818 (9th Cir. Apr. 10, 2024)04/10/2024
Court of appeals affirmed the district court’s opinion granting motion to compel arbitration, reasoning that the transportation worker exemption under Section I of the FAA does not extend to business entities or commercial contracts. Court of appeals found the delegation provision in the arbitration clause was not unconscionable, as it was between sophisticated parties, so plaintiffs’ unconscionability arguments directed at the arbitration agreement as a whole must be decided by the arbitrator.
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Royal White Cement, Inc. v. Weco Holli M/V, No. 23-CV-00788-BSL-DPC (E.D. La. Apr. 9, 2024)04/09/2024
Court granted in part motions to compel arbitration and to stay case pursuant to the New York Convention and denied in part motions to stay, insofar as they sought to stay the case in its entirety as to claims and parties not subject to the arbitration agreement.
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St. James Parish School Board v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s, No. 23-CV-06638-BSL-MBN (E.D. La. Apr. 1, 2024)04/01/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration and stay litigation where all four factors of the New York Convention had been met: the parties entered into a written agreement to arbitrate, the agreement provides for arbitration in a New York Convention signatory nation, the agreement arises out of a commercial legal relationship, and the respondent is a non-American citizen and party to the arbitration agreement.
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Sunbelt Innovative Plastics, LLC v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyds, London, 23-CV-06194-BSL-JVM (E.D. La. Apr. 1, 2024)04/01/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration and stay litigation where it found all four factors of the New York Convention had been met: the parties entered into a written agreement to arbitrate, the agreement provides for arbitration in a New York Convention signatory nation, the agreement arises out of a commercial legal relationship, and respondent is a non-American citizen and party to the arbitration agreement.
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Jubilant Generics Limited v. Dechra Veterinary Products, LLC, 2:23-CV-00237-JDL (D. Me. Mar. 28, 2024)03/28/2024
Court granted plaintiff’s motion to compel ICC arbitration of defendant’s counterclaims, holding the issue of waiver was for the court to decide because it was based on litigation conduct and that plaintiff had not waived its right to compel arbitration because its claims fell within an exemption to the arbitration provision in the parties’ underlying agreement, and the parties were required to litigate in two forums to give effect to the arbitration agreement under the FAA.
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Chifici Enterprise D/B/A Deanie’s Seafood v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, No. 2:23-CV-05764-JTM-MBN (E.D. La. Mar. 27, 2024)03/27/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stay the proceedings, holding that all four requirements of the New York Convention were met. Although at least one party to the agreement was not a foreign or non-American citizen, court granted the motion, holding that plaintiffs were equitably estopped from objecting to arbitration because their underlying claims alleged misconduct among the various defendants, who included foreign citizens, that was interdependent and in concert.
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Landbridge Port Services (Hong Kong) Ltd. v. Notarc Port Investment LLC, 1:24-CV-00254-GBW (D. Del. Mar. 27, 2024)03/27/2024
Court granted plaintiff’s motion to remand to Delaware state court, holding, in agreement with the Second Circuit, that § 205 of the FAA does not independently confer subject matter jurisdiction. Court found that it also did not have federal question jurisdiction under § 203 of the FAA, because it was an action to enjoin an arbitration in Panama instead of a motion to compel arbitration or enforce an award.
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Stonelake Condominium Association, Inc. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, 3:23-CV-00279-JWD-SDJ (M.D. La. Mar. 27, 2024)03/27/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stay the proceedings, holding that the arbitration agreement was covered by the New York Convention and thus could not be reverse preempted by a Louisiana state statute prohibiting arbitration clauses in insurance contracts. Court held further that the New York Convention was applicable to all defendants, including US citizen defendants, because the underlying claims alleged that all defendants acted “interdependently and in concert.”
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Vitol, Inc., v. Copape Produtos de Petroleo LTDA, No. 22-CV-10569-JPC (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 21, 2024)03/21/2024
Court granted petitioner’s motion to compel arbitration and denied respondent’s cross-motion to dismiss the action. Court found that, although respondent was not a signatory to the relevant contracts, respondent was estopped from refusing to be bound by the arbitration clauses contained therein because it directly benefited from the contracts.
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Concept Engineering LLC v. Pinterest, Inc., No. 21-CV-01465-MN (D. Del. Mar. 20, 2024)03/20/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to stay action pending arbitration finding whether a non-signatory can compel plaintiff to arbitrate is a question of arbitrability which was delegated to the arbitrator by “clear and unmistakable” evidence.
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Allianz Risk Transfer (Bermuda) Limited, v. High Lonesome Wind Power, LLC, No. 22-CV-05133-GHW (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 19, 2024)03/19/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration finding the parties’ arbitration agreement unambiguously requires the arbitration of their dispute regarding the calculation of the amount due under the contract.
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McBurnie v. RAC Acceptance East, LLC, No. 22-16868 (9th Cir. Mar. 14, 2024)03/14/2024
Court of appeals affirmed district court’s denial of motion to compel arbitration finding that defendant’s arbitration agreement was unenforceable under a California law invalidating contracts that waive the right to seek injunctive relief on behalf of the general public, and that California law was not preempted by the FAA. Court of Appeals further found that its prior decision was not abrogated by the subsequent Supreme Court decision in Viking River because that decision dealt with a different California law.
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Anhui Powerguard Technology Company, Limited v. DRE Health Corporation, No. 23-1820 (8th Cir. Mar. 14, 2024)03/14/2024
Court of appeals affirmed district court’s denial of motion to stay litigation and compel arbitration under the FAA. Court of appeals determined that the parties did not agree to submit their dispute to arbitration where the arbitration agreement included a condition precedent which was not satisfied.
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Bufkin Enterprises, L.L.C. v. Indian Harbor Insurance Company, No. 23-30171 (5th Cir. Mar. 4, 2024)03/04/2024
Court of appeals reversed district court’s denial of appellants’ motion to compel arbitration under the New York Convention. Court of appeals found that the doctrine of equitable estoppel under Louisiana law compelled arbitration because the appellee signatory to the arbitration agreement raised allegations of substantially interdependent and concerted misconduct by both non-signatory appellants and one or more of the signatory appellants to the arbitration agreement, even though the complaint later dismissed the signatory appellants as defendants.
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Chicken Mart, Inc. v. Independent Specialty Insurance Company, No. 23-CV-06661-EEF-JVM (E.D. La. Feb. 23, 2024)02/23/2024
Court granted motion to compel arbitration and stayed litigation pending arbitration, finding that the requirements of the New York Convention were satisfied. Court compelled arbitration between foreign and domestic defendants because plaintiff was alleging intertwined conduct on the part of all defendants.
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Apex Hospitality Group, LLC v. Independent Specialty Insurance Company, No. 23-CV-02060-JTM-JVM (E.D. La. Feb. 23, 2024)02/23/2024
Court granted motion to compel arbitration, finding that the requirements of the New York Convention were satisfied. Court found that plaintiff was equitably estopped from objecting to arbitration against domestic defendant, a non-signatory to the arbitration agreement, because plaintiff alleged conduct that was interdependent and concerted with signatory foreign defendant. Court also held that arbitration clauses are forum or venue selection clauses and application of equitable estoppel was thus not precluded by Louisiana law.
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Hoeg v. Samsung Electronics of America, Inc., No. 23-CV-01951 (E.D. Ill. Feb. 20, 2024)02/20/2024
Court found under § 4 of the FAA, that it may grant an order to compel arbitration where a duly initiated arbitral proceeding was previously administratively closed due to the opposition’s failure to pay its fees. To hold otherwise would lead to a “never-ending game of cat-and-mouse” where the parties continue to initiate arbitration proceedings and one-party refuses to pay.
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Cameron Parish Recreation #6 v. Indian Harbor Insurance Company, No. 23-30181 (5th Cir. Feb. 19, 2024)02/19/2024
Court of Appeals vacated a discovery order and remanded to the district court to immediately grant a stay pending its decision on arbitration. Court of appeals found discovery was improper in this case, where determining if a valid arbitration agreement existed between the parties was purely a matter of law.
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Chemaly v. Lampert, No. 23-CV-24257-BB (S.D. Fla. Feb. 16, 2024)02/16/2024
Court granted in part and denied in part motions to compel arbitration pursuant to the New York Convention and to remand to state court, finding certain claims reasonably arose out of the arbitration agreement and remanding to state court the tort claims that did not fall within the scope of the arbitration agreement and did not arise under federal law.
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Port of Vancouver USA v. BNSF Railway Company, No. 3:23-CV-05560-DGE (W.D. Wash. Feb. 15, 2024)02/15/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to dismiss and compel arbitration under the FAA as to claims that defendant was not complying with an arbitration award against it that had been confirmed by a federal court. Court reasoned that whether it could enforce the terms of the arbitration award was a “question of arbitrability” it could not resolve because the award was ambiguous.
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FGI Industries, Inc. v. Tangshan Ayers Bath Equipment Co., Ltd., No. 14-CV-00188-HDV-RAO (C.D. Cal. Feb. 13, 2024)02/13/2024
Court denied defendant’s motion to compel arbitration finding defendant waived that right by actively seeking to litigate the underlying merits of the case, including filing five motions to dismiss and multiple other procedural and substantive motions over the past twelve years.
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Carriage Court Condominiums Owners Association v. Renaissance Re, No. 23-CV-05544-LMA-MBN (E.D. La. Feb. 7, 2024)02/07/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration finding the insurance policy included a valid arbitration agreement enforceable pursuant to the New York Convention and the FAA. Plaintiff failed to file a timely opposition.
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Cedar Ridge, LLC v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, No. 23-CV-07350-SSV-JVM (E.D. La. Feb. 7, 2024)02/07/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stay the proceedings finding arbitration is mandated under the plaintiff’s insurance policy and the dispute is governed by the New York Convention. Plaintiff did not oppose the motion.
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First United Methodist Church of Houma v. Underwriters at Lloyds of London, No. 23-CV-00610-JTM-JVM (E.D. La. Feb. 7, 2024)02/07/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration finding the plaintiff’s insurance policy included a valid and enforceable arbitration clause. Court rejected plaintiff’s argument that defendants had waived their right to arbitration finding that defendants did not evince a desire to resolve the dispute through litigation rather than arbitration by admitting venue and jurisdiction were proper in their answer, raising affirmative defenses but not the issue of arbitration, conducting discovery and providing initial disclosures, participating in mediation, and the passage of significant time since plaintiff filed its petition in state court.
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Parish of Lafourche v. Indian Harbor Insurance Company, No. 23-CV-03472-SM-MBN, Dkt. No. 33 (E.D. La. Feb. 2, 2024)02/02/2024
Court denied plaintiff’s motion to remand to state court finding abstention was inappropriate, namely, because the cause of action arose under federal law under the New York Convention and FAA, and the dispute did not involve vital state interests.
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Parish of Lafourche v. Indian Harbor Insurance Company, No. 23-CV-03472-SM-MBN, Dkt. No. 34 (E.D. La. Feb. 2, 2024)02/02/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stay proceedings finding the service-of-suit clause did not constitute a waiver of defendants’ right to compel arbitration. Instead, the clause complemented the arbitration agreement by establishing a forum where the parties may enforce an arbitration award.
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Dryades YMCA v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyds, London, No. 23-CV-03411-JTN-MBN (E.D. La. Jan. 31, 2024)01/31/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stay proceedings finding that Louisiana state law does not prevent the enforcement of arbitration clauses in insurance contracts as to foreign insurers. Court found that the New York Convention superseded the Louisiana state law seeking to supersede federal laws regulating the business of insurance.
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Regal Games, LLC v. SellerX Eight GMBH, No. 1:22-CV-07455-ER (S.D.N.Y. Jan. 25, 2024)01/25/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration pursuant to the FAA, finding that the parties formed a valid agreement to arbitrate even when the underlying agreement did not expressly contain the words arbitration or arbitrator and where the arbitrator was a non-legal expert. Court stayed the proceedings pending the outcome of the arbitration.
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Bayport Financial Service (USA) Inc. v. Bayboston Managers, LLC, No. 22-CV-21306-JEM (S.D. Fla. Jan. 24, 2024)01/24/2024
Magistrate judge recommended that motion to compel arbitration be granted pursuant to the New York Convention, finding that an alter ego analysis was inapplicable here and thus, one defendant’s engagement in litigation could not waive the arbitral rights of another defendant.
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The Resource Group International Limited v. Chishti, No. 23-286 (2d Cir. Jan. 22, 2024)01/22/2024
Court of Appeals vacated and remanded the district court’s order finding it relied on an erroneous view of the law in concluding that plaintiffs failed to demonstrate a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims and irreparable harm absent a preliminary injunction. Court of Appeals found (1) district court erroneously concluded that a later-executed agreement that did not specifically mention arbitration likely did not supersede the arbitration agreement, and, as a result, failed to determine the scope of the agreement or otherwise identify which claims are arbitrable in the first instance; and (2) district court erred in concluding that being forced to arbitrate an inarbitrable claim cannot constitute irreparable harm.
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Siddiqui Enterprises, LLC v. Independent Specialty Insurance Company, No. 2:23-CV-04329-CJB-JVM (E.D. La. Jan. 19, 2024)01/19/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration, finding the arbitration agreement was enforceable under the New York Convention because there was a written agreement to arbitrate, the agreement provided for arbitration in a New York Convention signatory nation, the agreement arose out of a commercial legal relationship, and at least one party to the agreement was not an American citizen. Court rejected plaintiff’s argument that, pursuant to the McCarran-Ferguson Act, a local Louisiana law reverse-preempted the enforceability of the arbitration clause.
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Watershape, Inc. v. The Association of Pool and Spa Professionals, No. 2:23-CV-00466-JCM-EJY (D. Nev. Jan. 19, 2024)01/19/2024
Court granted defendants’ motion to dismiss and compel arbitration pursuant to the FAA, finding the language of the arbitration clause was broad in scope and thus plaintiff’s dispute concerning how the underlying agreement must be interpreted fell within the scope of the arbitration clause.
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Causeway Partners, L.L.C. v. Indian Harbor Insurance Company, No. 23-CV-06108-SM-JVM (E.D. La. Jan. 17, 2024)01/17/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration and stay the proceedings, finding that the requirements of the New York Convention were satisfied. As to domestic defendants, court found that (i) the doctrine of equitable estoppel applied to non-signatories to the arbitration provision; and (ii) Louisiana law did not prohibit the domestic defendants from enforcing the arbitration clause found in each of their contracts. Court noted that although Louisiana law ordinarily prohibits enforcement of arbitration clauses as forum or venue selection clauses, Louisiana law grants an exception to surplus line insurance policies like that issued by defendants.
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Patterson v. Jump Trading LLC, No. 22-CV-03600-PCP (N.D. Cal. Jan. 4, 2024)01/04/2024
Court denied defendant’s motion to compel arbitration because defendant was not a party to the arbitration agreement between plaintiffs and former defendant. Court concluded that lead plaintiff’s arbitration agreement did not delegate issues of arbitrability to an arbitrator, and the arbitration agreement did not compel arbitration against non-signatory defendant.
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Battle v. General Motors, LLC, No. 22-CV-10783-MAG-KGA (E.D. Mich. Jan. 4, 2024)01/04/2024
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration on the grounds that the question of arbitrability as to the claims involving defendant—as a non-party to the agreement containing the arbitration provision—was properly delegated to the arbitrator.
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Nicholas Services, LLC v. Bombardier Inc., 3:23-CV-00251-MPM-RP (N.D. Miss. Dec. 26, 2023)12/26/2023
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stayed the proceedings after determining that it should decide threshold issues of arbitrability, despite AAA’s letter to the parties stating that AAA had made an administrative determination that claimant met the filing requirements. Court acknowledged that the fact that plaintiffs had not signed the arbitration agreement was a significant obstacle to defendants’ case but nonetheless accepted defendants’ arguments that the at-issue warranty transferred with the product when the original purchaser resold the product to plaintiffs.
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TotalEnergies Renewables USA LLC v. Trina Solar (U.S.), Inc., No. 22-16763 (9th Cir. Dec. 21, 2023)12/21/2023
Court of appeals dismissed for lack of appellate jurisdiction under 28 USC § 1447(d) review of district court’s order denying motion to compel arbitration and remanding the case to state court. Court of appeals found district court’s order could be “colorably characterized” as a remand for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and thus, the order remanding the case was unreviewable on appeal.
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Nipro Corporation v. Verner, No. 19-CV-62121-AHS (S.D. Fla. Dec. 21, 2023)12/21/2023
Court denied motion to dismiss where an ICC tribunal determined it did not have jurisdiction to decide the merits of plaintiff’s claims against defendants, and court retained jurisdiction to hear claims based on diversity jurisdiction.
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Union Bethel African Methodist Episcopal Church v. Independent Specialty Insurance Company, No. 2:23-CV-05455-LMA-KWR (E.D. La. Dec. 20, 2023)12/20/2023
Court granted motion to compel arbitration where Louisiana law does not prohibit the enforcement of arbitration clauses in surplus lines insurance policies and where plaintiff alleged substantially interdependent and concerted misconduct by foreign and domestic insurers.
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America Chung Nam, LLC v. Mitsui O.S.K. Lines, Ltd., No. 2:23-CV-07676-SB-JPR (C.D. Cal. Dec. 19, 2023)12/19/2023
Court denied motion to remand to state court and granted motion to compel arbitration where a valid arbitration agreement existed under the New York Convention and the claims at issue related to that agreement.
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Transportation Consultants, Inc. v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, No. 2:23-CV-06585-EEF-MBN (E.D. La. Dec. 15, 2023)12/15/2023
Court granted motion to compel arbitration of an insurance dispute and stay litigation pursuant to the New York Convention, where there was a written agreement to arbitrate, the arbitration clause required arbitration take place in a signatory nation, the agreement stemmed from a commercial legal relationship, and at least one defendant was a foreign citizen.
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Doe v. VGW Malta Ltd., No. 23-CV-03226-TWT (N.D. Ga. Nov. 28, 2023)11/28/2023
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration pursuant to the FAA, finding an arbitration agreement exists between the parties and there are no grounds on which to deny enforcement of the agreement. Court rejected plaintiff’s arguments that the arbitration agreement was void because it was made pursuant to a gambling contract which is illegal under Georgia law, and that plaintiff was fraudulently induced to enter the contract, finding both allegations are questions to be resolved by the arbitrator.
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Insurance Company of Greater New York v. Kinsale Insurance Company, 1:23-CV-03577-JMF (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 15, 2023)11/15/2023
Court granted defendant’s motion to compel arbitration, although plaintiff was not a signatory to the policy at issue, reasoning that plaintiff was bound by the arbitration clause because plaintiff sought to enforce other provisions of the policy against defendant. Court rejected plaintiff’s argument that the policy contained a “service of suit” provision, finding that the clause applies only when a party seeks to compel arbitration or enforce an arbitration award. Court similarly rejected plaintiff’s argument that defendant waived its right to compel arbitration by delaying its motion to compel until a month after the suit was filed and a few days after removal to federal court. Court stayed the proceedings pending resolution of the arbitration.
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National Casualty Company v. Continental Insurance Company, 1:23-CV-03143 (N.D. Ill. Nov. 15, 2023)11/15/2023
Court granted defendant’s cross-motion to compel arbitration of claims relating to the interpretation of a contractual provision that was the subject of previous arbitrations between the same parties that were confirmed in federal court. Court held that the preclusive effect of the previous arbitrations on the pending proceedings was appropriate for an arbitration panel to decide. Court dismissed the case without prejudice, concluding that all of the claims were subject to arbitration.
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Jean Lafitte Condominium, LLC v. Certain Underwriters at Lloyd’s London, 2:23-CV-03415-SSV-KWR (E.D. La. Nov. 14, 2023)11/14/2023
Court granted defendants’ motion to compel arbitration and stay the proceedings pending arbitration. Court found that the requirements of the New York Convention were satisfied and that the issue of arbitrability was for the arbitrators given the arbitration clause’s broad language encompassing all matters in difference, including those relating to the arbitrability of any dispute. Court stayed the proceedings and declined to exercise its discretion to dismiss the action, finding that defendants had not adequately justified that a dismissal, rather than a stay, was the proper action.
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Morningstar v. Amazon.com, 23-60367 (5th Cir. Nov. 14, 2023)11/14/2023
Court denied plaintiff’s motion to proceed in forma pauperis and dismissed as frivolous his appeal from the district court’s grant of defendant’s motion to compel arbitration and dismissal of the case, noting that plaintiff had not shown he was fraudulently induced into agreeing to the arbitration provisions at issue.
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La Belle Maison Associates, LLC v. Amrisc LP, No. 2:23-CV-06440-BWA-MBN (E.D. La. Nov. 9, 2023)11/09/2023
Court granted motion to compel arbitration and stay proceedings where the insurance policy at issue contained an arbitration clause that fell under the New York Convention and required all claims to be arbitrated in New York.
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Shenzhen Zongheng Domain Network Co., Ltd. v. Amazon.com Services LLC, No. 1:23-CV-03334-JLR (S.D.N.Y. Nov. 7, 2023)11/07/2023
Court denied petition to vacate arbitration award and granted cross-motion to confirm the award where there was no basis to confirm that the arbitrator manifestly disregarded the law and where there was no public policy ground to vacate the award.