MISSOURI SUPREME COURT ENFORCES CONCEPCION ON UNCONSCIONABILITY
Plaintiff Lavern Robinson brought a putative class action against Title Lenders, Inc. in Missouri state court. Title Lenders moved to stay and compel arbitration of the claims under the parties’ contract, which contained an agreement to arbitrate, as well as a class arbitration waiver. The trial court found the class arbitration waiver to be unconscionable, and therefore unenforceable under Missouri common law contract principles. The Missouri Supreme Court reversed, enforcing AT&T Mobility, LLC v. Concepcion, 131 S. Ct. 1740 (2011), because the trial court’s decision was based specifically on the unconscionability of the class arbitration waiver, thereby distinguishing its companion ruling in Brewer v. Mo. Title Loans, Inc., — S.W.3d —- (Mo. March 6, 2012), which allowed for unconscionability review of other aspects of an agreement, even in light of Concepcion, so long as the agreement was not invalidated for containing a class arbitration waiver. Robinson v. Title Lenders, Inc., No. SC91728 (Mo. March 6, 2012).
This post written by John Pitblado.
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