After litigating for nine months, including engaging in active discovery, the plaintiff sought an “eleventh-hour stay” in favor of litigation. Not condoning “the use of an arbitration clause as a parachute when judicial winds blow unfavorably”, the First Circuit found the plaintiff waived its right to arbitrate.
In Joca-Roca Real Estate, LLC v. Brennan, No. 14-1353 (1st Cir. Dec. 1, 2014), the plaintiff alleged claims for fraud and breach of contract arising from an asset purchase agreement. While the agreement contained a broad arbitration clause, the plaintiff made no effort to pursue arbitration, instead filing claims in federal court. For eight months, the parties engaged in extensive discovery including sixteen depositions, interrogatories, and the exchange of thousands of pages of documents, as well as several telephone conferences to resolve discovery disputes and scheduling conflicts. On December 6, 2013, with trial scheduled for February 3, 2014, and without explanation, plaintiff moved to stay the proceedings pending arbitration; defendant objected. [Read more…]