Opinion ID: 1630266
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: whether the arbitration agreement applies to russell's claims.

Text: ¶ 8. Russell contends that his claims arise from the actions and the wilful and wanton disregard of [his] property rights by [Performance Toyota], and are not, therefore, subject to the arbitration agreement. ¶ 9. The following provisions were conspicuously included in the Purchase Agreement: NOTICE TO CREDIT BUYER If this order involves credit, this form shall constitute an agreement by Purchaser and Seller to arbitrate any disputes which arise between them and shall authorize the Seller to secure any and all information from any source to determine the credit worthiness of the purchase.    ARBITRATION AGREEMENT Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to the vehicle which is the subject of this contract or its acquisition by Purchaser shall be submitted to arbitration before one arbitrator in Memphis, Tennessee in accordance with the Commercial Arbitration Rules of the American Arbitration Association. Judgment on the award rendered by the arbitrator may be entered by any court having jurisdiction thereof. Arbitration shall be the exclusive, final and binding method of resolution of any claim or controversy between the Purchaser and Performance Toyota, Inc. and must be initiated within 180 days after the claim or controversy first arises. Failure to timely initiate arbitration shall constitute waiver of the claim or controversy.    [T]he trade-in vehicle has not been rebuilt, reconditioned or salvaged, the vehicle has not suffered flood, hail or other substantial weather damage; and there is no indication of any of the foregoing or any other exception or condition noted on the vehicle's title. ¶ 10. In Smith Barney, Inc. v. Henry, 775 So.2d 722, 726 (Miss.2001), Justice Mills, writing for a 6-3 Court and discussing a similar argument, found that the broad phrase [a]ny controversy arising out of or relating to contained in an account management agreement encompassed a claim of breach of fiduciary duty because the funds which were the subject of the breach of fiduciary duty claim were derived directly from ... accounts and transactions with Smith Barney. The subject Purchase Agreement contains the identical phrase  [a]ny controversy or claim arising out of or relating to the vehicle which is the subject of this contract or its acquisition by Purchaser .... (emphasis added). ¶ 11. Russell argues that his claims that Performance Toyota fraudulently obtained the original title documents from the Lee County Tax Collector's office, wrongfully repossessed the Tacoma, illegally auctioned off the T-100 and intentionally converted Russell's property should not be subject to the arbitration agreement. Russell's claims do not differ in any way from those in Smith Barney. All of these claims pertain to the disputed ownership of the Tacoma and the T-100, the two vehicles which are the subject of the Purchase Agreement. Given the broad language of the clause contained in the Purchase Agreement, we find that the arbitration agreement does apply to Russell's claims.