Opinion ID: 1826077
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Southern Energy

Text: In December 2001, Stephen R. Shoultz purchased a mobile home manufactured by Southern Energy; in September 2002, George Dunigan and Jean Dunigan purchased a mobile home manufactured by Southern Energy. Southern Energy provided both Shoultz and the Dunigans a Limited Warranty covering their respective mobile homes. In those warranties was the following statement (entirely in capital letters): THIS LIMITED WARRANTY GIVES YOU SPECIFIC LEGAL RIGHTS, AND YOU MAY ALSO HAVE OTHER RIGHTS WHICH MAY VARY FROM STATE TO STATE. The warranties made no mention of arbitration. In addition to signing their respective purchase agreements and receiving their warranties, however, Shoultz and the Dunigans each signed other documents, including a stand-alone, two-page arbitration agreement. That arbitration agreement provided, in pertinent part: You and We agree to arbitrate any and all claims and disputes arising from or relating to the Contract, the Manufactured Home, the sale of the Manufactured Home, the design and construction of the Manufactured Home, the financing of the Manufactured Home, and any other disputes between You and Us, including any disputes regarding the enforceability, interpretation, breadth, scope and meaning of this Agreement. The arbitration will be binding. You and We further agree to waive any right to trial by jury in any civil action arising from or relating to the Contract, the Manufactured Home, the sale of the Manufactured Home, the design and construction of the Manufactured Home, the financing of the Manufactured Home and any other disputes between You and Us. The arbitration agreement further defined Contract to include, but not be limited to, ... any warranty.  (Emphasis added.) In addition to the language quoted immediately above indicating that the parties were waiving their right to a trial by jury, the arbitration agreement also contains the following separate, underlined section: IMPORTANT  JURY WAIVER You and We hereby irrevocably waive our right to trial by jury on any claims that You now have or may hereafter acquire against Us or that We now have or may hereafter acquire against You. This waiver will remain enforceable even if this Agreement, or any portion of it, is otherwise found to be unenforceable. (Capitalization in original.) The parties signed the arbitration agreement on signature lines located immediately below this jury-waiver section. The Dunigans sued Southern Energy asserting various claims, including violation of the Magnuson-Moss Act. Shoultz sued Southern Energy a few months later, also asserting various claims, including violations of the Magnuson-Moss Act. In each action, Southern Energy filed a motion to compel arbitration. The trial court consolidated the Shoultz and Dunigan actions for purposes of considering Southern Energy's motions to compel arbitration and conducted a hearing on the motions. The court denied Southern Energy's motions as to both Shoultz and the Dunigans. The reasoning stated by the trial judge in his order was identical to the reasoning he, as the judge also handling Jackson's action, had expressed in denying Patriot's motion. Southern Energy timely appealed as to each order. Upon motion filed by Southern Energy, this Court consolidated the two appeals. This Court further consolidated those two appeals with Patriot's appeal for purposes of writing one opinion.