ARBITRATION DENIED IN CLASS ACTION WHERE PLAINTIFF’S TRUST WAS A PARTY TO ARBITRATION AGREEMENT, BUT PLAINTIFF WAS NOT
In a life settlement transaction, in which a life insurance policy is sold by its owner to another for more than its cash-surrender value but less than the net death benefit, the seller contended that the broker and purchaser conspired to rig the bidding process, resulting in undisclosed kickbacks to the broker. The seller filed a putative class action against the broker, purchaser, and related entities alleging fraud and other similar claims. The defendants moved to compel arbitration (among other things), relying on an arbitration clause in the purchase agreement. The seller, however, had formed a trust to acquire the policy and never personally participated in the purchase agreement. The trial court thus denied arbitration, finding that the seller was a non-signatory against whom arbitration could not be compelled. The defendants appealed, and the Third Circuit affirmed, holding that the seller of the policy could not be equitably estopped from avoiding the reach of the purchase agreement. The court explained that the “alleged fraud was related to the purchase agreement—it set the purchase price and, allegedly, the inflated, undisclosed broker’s commission. But that alone is not sufficient to compel arbitration under the equitable estoppel doctrine: the claims must be based directly on the agreement.” Here, the allegedly fraudulent kickback agreement “took place prior to and apart from the execution of the purchase agreement.” Griswold v. Coventry First LLC, Case No. 13-1879 (3d Cir. Aug. 11, 2014).
This post written by Michael Wolgin.
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