Opinion ID: 1945569
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Arbitration Damages the Constitutional Rights of Mississippians.

Text: ¶ 35. I also write to express my continuing concern at our steadfast march towards arbitration. Arbitration as a concept is wholly validif parties wish to settle disputes outside of the legal system, they should be able to contract for such a result. ¶ 36. However, two massive problems have proved to be the norm rather than the exception. First, this Court has continually deferred to the decisions of the federal courts and the FAA, which is a creation of the U.S. Congress. In my view, the states are not bound by these decisions, and the Legislature and courts of Mississippi should ultimately regulate the usage of arbitration within our state. See generally Allied-Bruce Terminix Companies, Inc. v. Dobson, 513 U.S. 265, 285-97, 115 S.Ct. 834, 845-51, 130 L.Ed.2d 753 (1995) (Thomas, J., dissenting). ¶ 37. I also repeat the same concerns I have previously voiced concerning the unlimited reach of arbitration: if we decide today that arbitration covers claims wholly unrelated to the contract from which it is grounded, what is not covered by this arbitration agreement? For example, if one of the plaintiffs had been murdered while at Greater Canton Ford paying a bill, could the dealership insist that the wrongful death claim be submitted to arbitration? If an employee of Greater Canton Ford picked one of the plaintiff's pockets when he came in on business related to the purchase of a vehicle, and the plaintiff sued the employee for conversion, would he be forced to arbitrate that claim? Would it make no difference that the conversion had occurred 20 years after her last transaction with Greater Canton Ford? These very same hypotheticals were dismissed as absurd by the Seventh Circuit, which limited an arbitration agreement over payday loans in Smith v. Steinkamp, 318 F.3d 775, 777 (7th Cir.2003). Yet today we chart a different pathone towards unlimited arbitration. ¶ 38. Lastly, I write to emphasize my continuing belief that all Mississippians have a fundamental constitutional right to both a jury of their peers and access to the court system. Because arbitration significantly interferes with these fundamental rights, it should be reviewed accordingly with strict scrutiny. See Cleveland v. Mann, 942 So.2d 108, 121-22 (Miss.2006) (Diaz, J., dissenting). Because today the majority continues down a path which deprives Mississippians of fundamental constitutional rights, I must respectfully dissent. EASLEY, J., JOINS THIS OPINION IN PART.