In 2011, Dallas’ Fifth Court of Appeals vacated a $22 million arbitration award after finding that an arbitrator failed to disclose gifts given to him by a lawyer who represented a party in the arbitration. Now the Fifth Court has rejected the prevailing litigants’ attempt to sue JAMS, the arbitrator, a law firm, defendant attorneys and those lawyers’ client for fraud and breach of contract.
While the latest appeal in the dispute presented the appellate court with some novel professional liability questions—including whether arbitrators and lawyers can be sued for alleged wrongdoing related to an arbitration—the Fifth Court ultimately dismissed the claims over a discovery issue. [See "Can an Arbitrator Be Sued for Failing to Disclose Gifts From a Lawyer?," Texas Lawyer, Feb. 17, 2014, page 4.]
