Opinion ID: 172856
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 5

Heading: Application to PDC's Appeal

Text: Under the test as we have articulated it, PDC's motion does not meet the criteria to support jurisdiction under § 16(a). PDC styled its motion as a Rule 12 motion to dismiss, rather than a motion under § § 3 or 4 of the FAA to stay litigation and compel arbitration. Thus, under the first step of our analysis, it does not qualify for interlocutory appeal. As to the second step of the analysis, in the section of its motion related to the arbitration agreement, PDC asserted that Plaintiff's Complaint should be dismissed ... because Plaintiff agreed to arbitrate all claims relating to his employment with [PDC]. (App. at 33.) In the conclusion of its memorandum in support of the motion, PDC asked the court to dismiss Plaintiff's complaint. ( Id. at 66.) This is a request for judicial relief in the form of dismissal, rather than a request that the court refer the case to an arbitrator to decide the issues. Therefore, the essence of PDC's motion was not for relief under the FAA, and so no § 16(a) appellate jurisdiction exists over the denial of that motion. To be sure, PDC did mention that the court might compel arbitration in one sentence of its memorandum, and did cite to one Third Circuit case addressing § § 3 and 4 of the FAA. But these two offhand references do not serve to make it plainly apparent that the essence of the motion is a request for relief under the FAA. Therefore, we find that we do not possess jurisdiction to review the district court's denial of PDC's motion to dismiss Conrad's Complaint.