When must a lawsuit go to arbitration or stay in federal or state court? Take a close look at the arbitration provision in your document. Sometimes, only SOME claims go to arbitration. Consider a recent case which discusses this very issue. (To read more about whether you have to go to arbitration, click HERE.) Why Florida arbitration? What is arbitration and why is there an arbitration provision in my document? Think of arbitration as private judging. A forum for the resolution of a dispute. Instead of going to court, the parties to an arbitration agreement go to a private, non-public proceeding. Arbitration. Instead of a judge in a robe, you have arbitrators. Either one single arbitrator. Or a panel (e.g. 3 ) arbitrators. Instead of a judgment, you get an “award”. Arbitration can be had by the agreement of the parties. Often, there is an arbitration provision in documents like contracts. Or a power of attorney. If you sign the contract with such a provision, you are agreeing to at least some arbitration. Or, arbitration of at least some of the claims brought by you or another party to the contract. In Florida, there is a statute in the Florida Probate Code which acknowledges that you can have an arbitration provision in a will or a trust. See Fla. Stat. 731.401. To read more about Florida probate and trust litigators who have handled this issue, click here. Why only some? Because some arbitrations provisions may have a “carve out”. What’s […]

Florida arbitration or a trial in state or federal court? Seasoned trial attorneys reveal that arbitration is not necessarily all that it’s cracked up to be. While there may be some perceived advantages, can you really be compelled to arbitrate a matter? Let’s consider arbitration in light of a recent Florida appellate opinion. The Arbitration Code Chapter 682 of the Florida Statutes is the Florida Arbitration Code. Arbitration has been described as “private judging.” It’s a quasi-judicial proceeding in a private forum, as compared to a public state court or federal court. It is a forum to resolve a litigation. A lawsuit. Instead of a judge, you get an arbitrator. Sometimes you get a panel of three arbitrators. Who each charge you hundreds of dollars an hour for their services. Yes, that’s right ! Arbitration costs money ! Clauses in Contracts Many times, there are clauses in contracts, and even in wills and trusts, which mandate arbitration. In other words, if you have certain disputes, you cannot have that resolved in a Florida court. Often, there is a disagreement over whether a particular claim, or lawsuit, or dispute, is covered by the arbitration provision. Do you have to arbitrate a fraud claim? And if you start out in state court, if the proceedings keep going, did someone WAIVE the right to arbitrate? And who decides if a claim is “arbitrable” or not: a judge or an arbitrator? (For a brief September 8, 2021 3rd DCA appellate opinion on waiving the […]

Have you heard of arbitration of disputes in Florida? Would you give up your right to appear before a Judge in a public courtroom? Do you think being in front of a private arbitration panel is better? Well, we have written about Powers of Attorney and arbitration before. Now, we will consider a March 2021 3rd DCA case on arbitration. It is not a will or trust case, but it is worth reading. Why? Because it considers the issue of making third parties “go” to arbitration, who prefer to be in federal or state court. In this 3rd DCA case, a motion to compel arbitration was denied at the trial level. Another issue which trial courts deal with, with a pending motion to compel arbitration, is whether a stay should be entered. Finally, this legal commentary has some authority below regarding arbitration of will and trust disputes in Florida. Florida Arbitration Law Florida has its own Arbitration Code, Chapter 632. To read a March 10, 2021 3rd District Court of Appeal opinion on arbitration, CLICK HERE. The case of City of Miami v. Ortiz repeated a number of bedrock legal principles regarding arbitration in Florida. But what makes this recent Florida arbitration opinion interesting is that it discusses one of the “hot topics” of arbitration. Can you compel a non-signatory to arbitration? Let’s put that another way. Can you make someone who is suing you go to arbitration even when they don’t want arbitration, and they never signed any arbitration […]