The Supreme Court has ruled (again) that state laws purporting to condition the enforceability of arbitration agreements on grounds not ennumerated in Section 2 of the Federal Arbitration Act are themselves unenforceable on Supremacy grounds. I teach that principle in my class using Southland v. Keating, and now I can use this more recent case.
Many smarter and more sophisticated students of arbitration law will provide commentary on the AT&T Mobility decision, but I was struck by an article in the same day’s New York Times noting that, after waiting nine years, the family of Mark Bavis, a passenger on one of the planes that rammed into the World Trade Center, is about to go to trial in its wrongful death suit against United Airlines and other defendants.
What’s the link? Both claimants were offered full reimbursement for their loss. Both rejected the offer — not because they thought it inadequate, but because they wanted to prove something other than damages.
What is it that Americans seek, in the expensive, protracted and uncertain world of the courts, when they don’t seek damages for their injuries, but proceed with the horrors of litigation litigation anyway?
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Tags: Arbitration, Courts, Public Policy
