Court Opinion

ID: 9564426
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 19:00:25.874289+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:18:24.267175
License: Public Domain

*266Utter, J.
(concurring)* — I concur with the holding of the majority that no support exists for the Petitioners’ position that the arbitrator exceeded his power within the meaning of RCW 7.04.160(4) and that the award cannot be disturbed. I also concur with the award of attorney fees and costs to Respondents. While I believe the majority has reached the right result, it cites the wrong reason for its conclusion. By so doing, its reasoning may cause confusion in future cases and weaken the purposes sought to be achieved by the clear language of the Legislature.
The majority mistakenly relies upon language in a previous case which recited language of a statute not now in effect for its conclusion that the arbitration award to be vacated must show that "the award on its face shows their adoption of an erroneous rule, or mistake in applying the law . . .”. Northern State Constr. Co. v. Banchero, 63 Wn.2d 245, 249-50, 386 P.2d 625 (1963). The majority also relies upon an even earlier case, School Dist. 5 v. Sage, 13 Wash. 352, 43 P. 341 (1896), in support of the rule that errors and mistakes contemplated by the statute must appear on the face of the award, or at least in some paper delivered with it.
The difficulty with these and other cases cited by Petitioners is that they rely upon the "error of law/face of the award” doctrine, which depends upon the text of earlier versions of RCW 7.04.160(4) not now in effect. This language finds no expression or support in the current statute enacted in 1943. Laws of 1943, ch. 138. Previous cases overlook the fact that the Washington arbitration statute has been amended several times. They mistakenly carry over to the current statute interpretations based upon prior statutes with no attention paid to the differences in language.
Rem. Comp. Stat. § 424 (1922) provided:
The party against whom an award may be made may except in writing thereto for either of the following causes:
*267(1) That the arbitrators or umpire misbehaved themselves in the case;
(2) That they committed an error in fact or law,
(3) That the award was procured by corruption or other undue means.
(Italics mine.) All cases adopting the "error of fact or law” doctrine rely on the provisions of this repealed statute. Northern State Constr. Co. v. Banchero, 63 Wn.2d 245, 249-50, 386 P.2d 625 (1963) relied on Hatch v. Cole, 128 Wash. 107, 222 P. 463 (1924) and Puget Sound Bridge & Dredging Co. v. Frye, 142 Wash. 166, 252 P. 546 (1927) for the "error of law/face of the award rule”, both of which relied in turn on the language of the statute which was then in effect, but was repealed before Northern State was decided. Hatch, at 109; Puget Sound Bridge, at 176-77. Thorgaard Plumbing & Heating Co. v. County of King, 71 Wn.2d 126, 426 P.2d 828 (1967) relied on Northern State to continue the erroneous reliance on the language of a repealed statute.
The current statute is substantially different. Rather than allowing for exception to the arbitrator’s award when the arbitrator "committed an error in fact or law”, Rem. Comp. Stat. § 424(2) (1922), the current statute allows for application for an order vacating the award only where "the arbitrators exceeded their powers, or so imperfectly executed them that a final and definite award upon the subject matter submitted was not made”. RCW 7.04.160(4). This section does not contain a provision providing for vacation of an arbitrator’s award based upon an error of law. For this reason, all cases referring to the "error in fact or law” language contained in the former statute are neither persuasive nor controlling authority for our holding in this case.
The language concerning arbitrators’ "errors of law” was eliminated when RCW 7.04.160 was adopted by the Legislature in 1943. We have affirmed in Barnett v. Hicks, 119 Wn.2d 151, 829 P.2d 1087 (1992), that the scope of *268review for arbitral decisions is very narrow and does not include review of the merits of the case. We also noted that our review is strictly limited to statutory grounds. Barnett, at 156. See also Puget Sound Bridge, 142 Wash. at 177 ("there is in this state no such thing as a common law arbitration . . . the proceeding is wholly statutory”). This court should not resurrect the language of an old statute to give meaning to a body of law specifically rejected through repeal by the Legislature.
Washington is not the only state to struggle with the newer narrow language of arbitral statutes limiting appeal from an arbitrator’s award. In Moncharsh v. Heily & Blase, 3 Cal. 4th 1, 832 P.2d 899, 10 Cal. Rptr. 2d 183 (1992), the California Supreme Court reviewed the history of the "error of law/face of the award” doctrine in California and concluded that an award reached by an arbitrator pursuant to a contractual agreement to arbitrate is not subject to judicial review except on the grounds set forth in Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 1286.2 to vacate and § 1286.6 for a correction. In effectively overruling the common law rule and mandating instead the exclusive use of the statute, the court stated that "the existence of an error of law apparent on the face of the award that causes substantial injustice does not provide grounds for judicial review”. Moncharsh, at 33.
The California statute is for all practical purposes identical to the current Washington statute. Section 1286.2, "Grounds for vacation of award”, of the California Code of Civil Procedure provides that "the court shall vacate the award if the court determines . . . (d) The arbitrators exceeded their powers and the award cannot be corrected without affecting the merits of the decision upon the controversy submitted”. Cal. Civ. Proc. Code § 1286.2 (West Supp. 1995). The Moncharsh court concluded that the only bases for judicial review of an arbitration were those found in the pertinent statute and the existence of an error of law apparent upon the face of the award does not, under the statute, provide grounds for judicial review. It further noted that its holding was con*269sistent with that of the majority of states. Moncharsh, at 27-28.
The current Washington statute provides that arbitral awards may be vacated by a court only on very narrow grounds. For this reason, in the context of issues raised by this case, an arbitral award should only be vacated if the arbitrator exceeded his powers and then only if the trial court "is satisfied that substantial rights of the parties were prejudiced thereby”. RCW 7.04.160(4).
A ruling on these grounds furthers the purpose of the arbitration statute. Parties enter into arbitration agreements for numerous reasons. Among them are to reduce expenses of litigation and to ensure a speedy and final resolution of their disputes. The expectation of finality is at the very heart of any arbitration agreement. Jonathan Yarowsky, Judicial Deference to Arbitral Determinations: Continuing Problems of Power and Finality, 23 UCLA L. Rev. 936, 948-49 (1976) ("Even in the absence of an explicit agreement [as to the final and binding nature of an arbitral award], conclusiveness is expected; the essence of the arbitration process is that an arbitral award shall put the dispute to rest”). See also Thomas Oehmke, Commercial Arbitration § 6:10, at 140 (1987) ("parties can take a certain measure of comfort in knowing that the arbitrator’s award will almost certainly mean an end to the dispute”). The parties have thus bargained and contracted for a final and binding award. Absent the presence of the very narrow grounds articulated in the statute, our courts should not disturb such an agreement.
Another reason parties enter into arbitration agreements is to keep their confidences and secrets out of the public eye. The facts of this case illustrate clearly why at the initiation of this transaction the parties might have wished to keep all of the details of Dr. Boyd’s conduct out of the public eye. In addition, these facts illustrate the tragedy of delay. One party has been unable to proceed in a reasonably expeditious manner in establishing his new practice. The other party has seen allegations of withhold*270ing information about serious professional misconduct spread across the pages of these law reports as he attempts to pursue a different course of action for his career.
Industry suffers as well when, after agreeing to arbitration clauses, the parties’ industrial secrets could be dragged through an extensive litigation and appellate process. This in spite of having bargained for arbitration and its speedy, private resolution in the original contract. Higher costs, risks of exposure of secrets and inability to quickly enforce an award all have the potential effect of discouraging arbitration in Washington if the language of our current statute is not followed.
For these reasons, while I agree with the result reached by the majority opinion, I cannot agree with the reasoning used by the majority based upon a statute no longer in effect. I urge that the narrow language of RCW 7.04.160(4) requiring an appellant to show "the arbitrators exceeded their powers, or so imperfectly executed them that a final and definite award upon the subject matter submitted was not made” be given its full meaning. The failure of Petitioners to show the arbitrator exceeded his powers or so imperfectly executed them that a final and definite award upon the subject matter was not made should be the sole reason for rejection of their claim.
Durham, C.J., and Madsen and Talmadge, JJ., concur with Utter, J. Pro Tern.
Reconsideration denied September 7, 1995.

Judge Robert F. Utter is serving as a justice pro tempore of the Supreme Court pursuant to Const. art. IV, § 2(1) (amend. 38).