Opinion ID: 4196860
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Garfinkel

Text: 10 In Garfinkel, a doctor employed by the Morristown Obstetrics and Gynecology Associates (“MOGA”) sued MOGA for breaching an employment contract, for perpetrating a tort, and for violating the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination (“LAD”). Garfinkel, 773 A.2d at 668. In response to the doctor’s suit, MOGA invoked the following arbitration clause: Except as otherwise expressly set forth in Paragraphs 14 or 15 hereof, any controversy or claim arising out of, or relating to, this Agreement or the breach thereof, shall be settled by arbitration in Morristown, New Jersey, in accordance with the rules then obtaining of the American Arbitration Association, and judgement [sic] upon any reward rendered by the arbitrator or arbitrators may be entered in any court having jurisdiction thereof. Id. The Supreme Court of New Jersey found that the arbitration clause did not cover the doctor’s statutory claims for three reasons. First, the clause did not reference statutory claims: “Moreover, the language does not mention, either expressly or by general reference, statutory claims redressable by the LAD.” Id at 672. Second, the clause implicitly exempted all other statutory claims by explicitly exempting some: “As noted, paragraph eighteen excepts from its purview the two paragraphs of the agreement pertaining to post-termination restrictions and severance pay. Those exceptions further suggest that the parties intended disputes over the terms and conditions of the contract, not statutory 11 claims, to be the subject of arbitration.” Id. Third, the clause mentioned contract disputes: “The clause states that ‘any controversy or claim’ that arises from the agreement or its breach shall be settled by arbitration. That language suggests that the parties intended to arbitrate only those disputes involving a contract term, a condition of employment, or some other element of the contract itself.” Id.