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Posts Tagged ‘Delta Mine Holding Co. v. AFC Coal Properties’

Second Circuit Sets Evident Partiality Standard for Party-Appointed Arbitrators on Industry Tripartite Arbitration Panels

July 26th, 2018 Appellate Practice, Arbitration Agreements, Arbitration as a Matter of Consent, Arbitration Practice and Procedure, Awards, Evident Partiality, Federal Arbitration Act Enforcement Litigation Procedure, United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, United States District Court for the Southern District of New York Comments Off on Second Circuit Sets Evident Partiality Standard for Party-Appointed Arbitrators on Industry Tripartite Arbitration Panels

Section 10(a)(2) of the Federal Arbitration Act (the “FAA”) authorizes courts to vacate awards “where there was evident partiality.  .  .  in the arbitrators.  .  .  .” 9 U.S.C. § 10(a)(2). As respects neutral arbitrators, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has long held that “[e]vident partiality may be found only where a reasonable person would have to conclude that an arbitrator was partial to one party to the arbitration.”  Scandinavian Reinsurance Co. Ltd. v. Saint Paul Fire and Marine Ins. Co., 668 F.3d 60, 64 (2d Cir. 2012) (quotations and citations omitted).

But, particularly in industry and labor arbitration, the parties do not necessarily intend that party-appointed arbitrators on tripartite panels are neutral, that is, disinterested in the outcome, impartial and independent. Can a party vacate an award based on the “evident partiality” of a non-neutral, party-appointed arbitrator, and if so, what standard applies to such a challenge? Continue Reading »