United States First Circuit

In plaintiffs' suit against their franchisor alleging various claims, including breach of contract, deceptive and unfair business practices, and failure to pay wages, district court's determination that the plaintiffs did not have to arbitrate their claims because they did not have adequate notice of the arbitration clauses contained in the franchise agreements is reversed where: 1) Massachusetts law, which governs this dispute, does not impose any such special notice requirement upon the commercial contractual provisions; and 2) a special notice requirement would be preempted by the Federal Arbitration Act, which requires courts to place such arbitral agreements upon the same footing as other contracts.

Appellate Information

• Decided 12/27/2012
• Published 12/27/2012

Judges

• Lynch

Court

• United States First Circuit

Counsel