Is An Arbitration Agreement Valid If The Designated Arbitrator Is Unavailable?
That’s a straightforward question, and the Virginia Supreme Court has given a rather straightforward answer: yes.
The question came up in Schuiling v. Harris, which we noted as coming over the transom but bears a little more scrutiny. Initially, let’s set aside some of the curious facts about this case. It’s not too curious that the plaintiff, William Schuiling -- owner of a collection of car dealerships in Virginia -- hired a housekeeper, Samantha Harris. It is a bit unusual, however, that Schuiling had his housekeeper sign an arbitration agreement as part of her employment – and that the agreement only addressed arbitration, and no other conditions of employment, such as how socks were to be folded or dusting the ceiling fans. It’s also odd that whatever happened in the employment relationship between Schuiling and Harris was pretty serious: it led Ms. Harris to file a “10-count complaint against Schuiling alleging multiple torts, statutory violations, and breach of contract,” as the Virginia Supreme Court explained – giving no details of the underlying allegations.