Jim Hamilton: Business Groups Urge Third Circuit to Allow Arbitration by Sitting Delaware Chancery Court Judges

In an amicus brief filed with the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, business groups asked for judicial approval of a valuable alternative to civil litigation offered to companies through arbitration by Delaware Court of Chancery judges. This arbitration allows companies to resolve their disputes before experts in corporate law, said the groups, but without the trammels and expense of drawn out litigation. A federal district court (DC Del) held that such arbitration must be conducted in public because it is tantamount to civil litigation, noted the brief, even though Delaware intended the arbitration as an alternative to and a substitute for, such litigation. The district court’s decision denies businesses a promising alternative to cumbersome litigation, argued the business groups, while not advancing any interest of openness, and should be reversed. The brief was submitted by the Business Roundtable and the US Chamber of Commerce. (Delaware Coalition for Open Government v. Strine, CA-3, No. 12-3859).

via jimhamiltonblog.blogspot.com