Law360 (May 15, 2020, 8:17 PM EDT) — A mining technology company has told the Ninth Circuit that a lower court erred in affirming a $1.8 million arbitration award to an engineering firm because no written agreement supports the payout for lost work.
Metal Recovery Solutions Inc. told the circuit court in its opening brief Wednesday that $1.8 million of an over $2 million arbitration award affirmed by a Nevada federal court was “completely irrational” and should have never been greenlighted. The chunk of money was part of an arbitration win for Geo-Logic Associates Inc. in its suit alleging MRS violated an oral contract. MRS told the appellate court Wednesday that the arbitrator ignored key facts to reach its “ill-considered and reversible” decision.
The arbitrator awarded GLA $1.8 million in damages for lost profits due to MRS allegedly not upholding its end of a spoken deal made in connection to a work order. But MRS says that finding ignored the fact that the two companies had an overarching agreement that superseded work orders and stipulated all contracts must be in writing.
“We don’t think there is much merit at all to their motion to vacate in the district court or in this appeal,” GLA’s attorney, Ronald P. Oines of Rutan & Tucker LLP, told Law360 on Friday, saying it takes more to overturn a binding arbitration than simply disagreeing with the outcome.
Read the full article – Mining Co. Tells 9th Circ. $1.8M Award Ignores No Written Deal