Jupiter Medical Center, Inc., Petitioner, v. Visiting Nurse Association of Florida, Inc., Respondent.

On Petition For A Writ Of Certiorari To The Supreme Court Of Florida

BRIEF OF INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF DEFENSE COUNSEL AND FLORIDA HOSPITAL ASSOCIATION AS AMICI CURIAE IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONER

SNELL & WILMER L.L.P.

MARY-CHRISTINE SUNGAILA

Counsel of Record

JENNY HUA

600 Anton Boulevard, Suite 1400

Costa Mesa, California 92626

Tel: 714-427-7000 * Fax: 714-427-7799

mcsungaila@swlaw.com

Counsel for Amici Curiae International Association of Defense Counsel and Florida Hospital Association

i

QUESTION PRESENTED

Whether, in articulating several specific grounds for vacating an arbitral award in Section 10 of the Federal Arbitration Act, Congress barred courts from vacating arbitral awards on any other ground, including illegality of the underlying contract as construed by the arbitrators.

ii

RULE 29.6 DISCLOSURE STATEMENT

Pursuant to Rule 29.6 of the Rules of this Court, amici curiae state the following:

The International Association of Defense Counsel has no corporate parents or subsidiaries and no publicly held company owns ten percent (10%) or more of any of its stock.

The Florida Hospital Association, a nonprofit 501(c)(6) organization, has no corporate parents and has a for-profit subsidiary, Florida Hospital Management Corporation. No publicly held company owns ten percent (10%) or more of any of its stock.

iii

TABLE OF CONTENTS QUESTION PRESENTED RULE 29.6 DISCLOSURE STATEMENT TABLE OF AUTHORITIES INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE INTRODUCTORY STATEMENT ARGUMENT I. Certiorari Should Be Granted to Resolve the Widespread Circuit Split Concerning Whether Arbitration Awards Can Be Vacated on Judicially-Created Grounds A. The Time is Ripe to Intervene. Virtually Every Circuit Has Interpreted This Court's Decision in Hall Street, Resulting in a Myriad of Conflicting Approaches to Arbitration Review B. This Case is the Right Vehicle to Ad dress the Legacy of Hall Street Because It Allows This Court to Consider One of the Most Fundamental Judicially-Created Grounds for Vacating an Arbitral Award Under the FAA CONCLUSION iv

TABLE OF AUTHORITIES

Cases

Abbott v. Law Office of Patrick J. Mulligan, 440 F. App'x 612 (10th Cir. 2011)

Affymax, Inc. v. Ortho-McNeil-Janssen Pharm., Inc., 660 F.3d 281 (7th Cir. 2011)

Allied-Bruce Terminix Companies, Inc. v. Dobson, 513 U.S. 265 (1995)

Ario v. Underwriting Members of Syndicate 53 at Lloyds for 1998 Year of Account, 618 F.3d 277 (3d Cir. 2010)

Citigroup Global Markets Inc. v. Bacon, 562 F.3d 349 (5th Cir. 2009)

Coffee Beanery, Ltd. v. WW, L.L.C., 300 F. App'x 415 (6th Cir. 2008), cert, denied, 558 U.S. 819 (2009)

Comedy Club, Inc. v. Improv W. Associates, 553 F.3d 1277 (9th Cir. 2009)

Continental Wall Paper Co. v. Louis Voight & Sons Co., 212 U.S. 227 (1909)

Dew an v. Walia, 544 F. App'x 240 (4th Cir. 2013), cert, denied, Walia v. Kiran M. Dewan, CPA, P.A., 134 S. Ct. 1788 (2014)

Eastern Associated Coal Corp. u. United Mine Workers of America, Dist. 17, 531 U.S. 57 (2000)

Frazier v. CitiFinancial Corp., LLC, 604 F.3d 1313 (11th Cir. 2010)

George Watts & Son, Inc. v. Tiffany and Co., 248 F.3d 577 (7th Cir. 2001)

Grain v. Trinity Health, Mercy Health Servs. Inc., 551 F.3d 374 (6th Cir. 2008), cert, denied, Grain v. Trinity Health, 558 U.S. 820 (2009)

Hall St. Associates, L.L.C. v. Mattel, Inc., 552 U.S. 576 (2008)

Hicks v. Cadle Co., 355 F. App'x 186 (10th Cir. 2009)

Improv W. Associates v. Comedy Club, Inc., 558 U.S. 824 (2009)

Johnson v. Wells Fargo Home Mortg., Inc., 635 F.3d 401 (9th Cir. 2011)

Kaiser Steel Corp. v. Mullins, 455 U.S. 72 (1982)

Legacy Trading Co. v. Hoffman, 363 F. App'x 633 (10th Cir. 2010)

Med. Shoppe Int'l, Inc. v. Turner Investments, Inc., 614 F.3d 485 (8th Cir. 2010)

McMullen v. Hoffman, 174 U.S. 639 (1899)

Ramos-Santiago v. United Parcel Service, 524 F.3d 120 (1st Cir. 2008)

Seymour v. Blue Cross/Blue Shield, 988 F.2d 1020 (10th Cir. 1993)

Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds Int'l Corp., 559 U.S. 662 (2010)

T. Co Metals, LLC v. Dempsey Pipe & Supply, Inc., 592 F.3d 329 (2d Cir. 2010)

Titan Tire Corp. of Freeport v. United Steel, Paper & Forestry, Rubber, Mfg., Energy, Allied Indus. & Serv. Workers Int'l Union, 734 F.3d 708 (7th Cir. 2013)

United Paperworkers Int'l Union, AFL-CIO v. Misco, Inc., 484 U.S. 29 (1987)

Visiting Nurse Ass'n of Florida, Inc. v. Jupiter Med. Ctr., Inc., No. SC11-2468, 2014 WL 6463506 (Fla. Nov. 6, 2014)

Wachovia Sec., LLC v. Brand, 671 F.3d 472 (4th Cir. 2012)

STATUTES

9 U.S.C. [section][section] 10-11

OTHER Authorities

Stipanowich, Thomas, Arbitration: The "New Litigation," 2010 U. 111. L. Rev. 1 (2010)

1

INTEREST OF AMICI CURIAE (1)

The International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC) is an association of corporate and insurance attorneys from the United States and around the globe whose practice is concentrated on the defense of civil lawsuits. The IADC membership is comprised of partners in large and small law firms, senior counsel in corporate law departments, and corporate and insurance executives. Members represent the largest corporations around the world, including the majority of companies listed in the FORTUNE 500. The IADC is...