Eleventh Circuit: Let The Arbitrator Decide Whether Agreement Permits Arbitration Of Class Claims

What Happened

The Eleventh Circuit held in Spirit Airlines, Inc. v. Maizes, No. 17-14415, 2018 WL 3866335, at *1 (11th Cir. Aug. 15, 2018) that an arbitrator, rather than the district court, must decide whether the arbitration agreement allows for arbitration of class claims.

The Takeaway

Before parties enter into arbitration agreements they should consider who they want to decide questions of arbitrability and carefully examine the rules they choose because there may be provisions that could lead to unintended consequences relating to arbitrability and procedural issues.

Procedural Background

On April 12, 2017, Steven Maizes and three other class representatives filed a claim in arbitration against Spirit Airlines, Inc., on behalf of a class of consumers based on Spirit's alleged violations of its $9 Fare Club Agreement. On May 30, 2017, Spirit filed suit against the class representatives in federal court in the Southern District of Florida, seeking