Arbitration Program Gets Straight AAA's Despite Failing In JAMS

On March 1, 2016, the New Jersey Appellate Division upheld a decision to compel an employee to arbitrate her dispute with Raymours Furniture Inc. ("Raymours") before the American Arbitration Association ("AAA") after JAMS refused to administer the arbitration because the employer's arbitration program conflicted with the JAMS Minimum Standards of Procedural Fairness.

Background

In Bowman v. Raymours Furniture Inc., the employee-plaintiff was a customer-care coordinator who had executed an agreement to submit all employment-related disputes to arbitration before  JAMS or AAA.  Importantly, Raymours' arbitration agreement provided that if it was deemed inconsistent with the administrator's rules, the agreement's terms would control the arbitration.