Arbitration awards are typically binding, with the losing party unable to appeal the arbitrator's decision. Partners Michael Brown and Richard Kellner are well known within the legal community for their ability to convince the courts to vacate arbitration awards.
The two partners successfully argued before the Court of Appeal to vacate an arbitration decision involving a law firm partnership dispute (O'Flaherty v. Belgum). The decision is significant because it offers guidelines on how arbitration agreements should be written to better protect the parties involved and offers insight on how arbitrators must conduct themselves.
Besides their success with O'Flaherty v. Belgum, Mike and Rich represented E! Entertainment Television ( Pinnacle Construction Corp. v. E! Entertainment Television) in Los Angeles Superior Court, where a judge threw out a $2 million arbitration award against the entertainment company. The arbitrator and the American Arbitration Association (AAA) failed to disclose information about the arbitrator prior to the start of arbitration that could have impacted whether the arbitrator was chosen to arbitrate the case. The case drew interest throughout the legal community because it may mean other arbitration awards could be vacated using "failure to disclose" legal theories. |
