The ethics of lawyers signing up clients with contracts that make sure fee disputes never reach a jury is certainly debatable, but such arbitration clauses are not “unconscionable,” according to a recent ruling by the Texas Supreme Court.
The decision reverses and remands a decision by Corpus Christi’s 13th Court of Appeals denying a motion to compel arbitration sought by the firm Royston, Rayzor, Vickery & Williams. The intermediate appellate court found it “unconscionable” to sign up a client that sent all disputes between the parties to arbitration—except fee disputes—because it favored the law firm. [See " Is a Firm/Client Arbitration Clause Unconscionable?," Texas Lawyer, March 2, 2015.]
