Obtaining Attorneys’ Fees in Florida Arbitrations: The Slowly Changing Law

In Florida, there are laws about arbitration agreements. There used to be a disagreement about whether lawyers’ fees could be awarded in arbitration, but a court case called Turnberry Associates v. Service Station Aids, Inc. said that lawyers’ fees could be awarded if both parties agreed to it. This means that if you have a problem with someone and you have an arbitration agreement, you can ask for your lawyers’ fees to be paid, but only if both parties agree to it. The Pierce court examined a lot of federal court decisions about the U.S. Arbitration Act and its strong support of arbitration. They said that state laws can’t undermine agreements covered by the act. The court questioned whether the stockbroker’s account agreement is covered by the U.S. Arbitration Act. They also discussed how the Florida law on arbitration might affect agreed-on arbitration of fee claims. The court also talked about how the Federal Arbitration Act applies to maritime transactions and commerce. They said that federal law supersedes state law when there’s a conflict. They also mentioned that trial courts have the authority to decide if parties have given up their right to have a court decide on attorney’s fees. The court pointed out that federal law doesn’t require parties to arbitrate if they haven’t agreed to it, and parties can also exclude certain claims from arbitration. The court made it clear that a trial court has the power to decide if parties have given up their right to have the court decide on attorney’s fees, even after they’ve agreed to arbitration. When there’s a disagreement and both parties have agreed to settle it through arbitration, there are a few ways it can end up in a court.

Before arbitration is completed, if one party doesn’t know about the arbitration agreement or doesn’t want to go through arbitration, they can file a lawsuit. The other party can then show the arbitration agreement and ask the court to put the lawsuit on hold until arbitration is done. If the other party doesn’t think the dispute should be settled through arbitration, they can also file a lawsuit and ask the court to stop the arbitration process until the court decides if the dispute should be settled through arbitration.

After arbitration is completed, if one party is happy with the decision but the other party doesn’t follow it, they can file a lawsuit to make sure the decision is enforced. If one party is not happy with the decision, they can file a lawsuit to try to change or cancel the decision.

The Florida Supreme Court and the U.S. Supreme Court have different opinions about how these cases should be handled, causing a conflict in the law. The U.S. Supreme Court has said that the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) is meant to make sure that private arbitration agreements are followed as they’re written. The FAA favors arbitration to settle disputes and applies to both federal and state courts. It’s meant to speed up the legal process and cut down on court congestion. The court also decides who gets to decide if an issue is eligible for arbitration. The question of who gets to decide if a dispute should go to arbitration depends on what the parties agreed to. If they clearly said that a certain issue should be decided by a judge before going to arbitration, then the judge will decide. But if it’s not clear, then the assumption is that the arbitrator will decide. The federal courts decide if a certain issue is really important for arbitration or just a procedural detail. If it’s really important, the court decides. If it’s not, the arbitrator decides. In simple terms, when there’s a dispute about whether a case should go to arbitration, the court usually decides. But if the dispute is about something smaller, like who pays the lawyers, then the arbitrator decides. This is the opposite of a rule in Florida. When people agree to settle a legal dispute through arbitration, they are also agreeing to have the issue of attorneys’ fees decided in the arbitration process. This means that the arbitration decision will cover both the main issue of the dispute and the question of who pays for the lawyers. In some cases, federal laws about arbitration might override state laws on attorneys’ fees. Overall, federal law strongly supports arbitration and limits the power of state laws to interfere with the process. In Florida, if two parties agree to settle a case through arbitration but don’t specifically say that the arbitrators can decide on attorney fees, the winning party has to go to a trial court to get those fees. This makes the process more complicated. Also, if the agreement says a certain state’s laws apply and that state only lets judges decide on punitive damages, the U.S. Supreme Court says that doesn’t matter – the arbitration agreement still stands. And if a state law discriminates against arbitration agreements, it’s overruled by federal law. Overall, the federal law on arbitration is stronger than Florida state law. Federal courts have ruled that some state laws which give exclusive power to state courts are not allowed under the FAA. In Florida, a rule which requires disputes to be resolved in state court may also be against federal law.

In cases brought under the FAA, judges have to follow a detailed process to decide how much money attorneys should be paid. This includes looking at the attorney’s performance in court. If a case is brought in state court instead of federal court, it may be harder for a judge to make a fair decision about attorney fees because they didn’t see the attorney’s performance. In 2013, the Florida Legislature changed the law about arbitration in the state. Now, arbitrators can decide to give extra money or punishment to one side in a dispute, if it’s allowed by regular laws. They can also make one side pay the other side’s lawyer and other costs, if regular laws or the arbitration agreement say so. The new law only applies to agreements made after July 1, 2013, and will apply to all agreements starting in 2016. Until then, older rules still apply to older agreements. In cases where parties agree to settle a dispute through arbitration and attorneys’ fees may be awarded, federal law will apply and override conflicting Florida law. The arbitrator has the authority to decide on attorneys’ fees and other related issues, unless the parties clearly exclude them from the arbitration agreement. A revised Florida law also allows arbitrators to award attorneys’ fees. Some court cases have addressed this issue, but the federal law, known as the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), takes precedence. These are citations and references to various court cases and laws related to arbitration and attorneys’ fees. They show that courts may award attorneys’ fees to the winning party in a case, and they also discuss the importance of arbitration in resolving legal disputes. Kenneth Starr, a lawyer licensed in Florida, Georgia, and Tennessee, is a certified mediator and arbitrator in Florida. He is also a member of The Florida Bar. This information is from a legal column submitted by the Labor and Employment Law Section. The column talks about a specific court case and the Florida Statutes related to arbitration. The column ends with a quote about the principles of The Florida Bar.

Source: https://www.floridabar.org/the-florida-bar-journal/obtaining-attorneys-fees-in-florida-arbitrations-the-slowly-changing-law/