Common sense (barely) prevails in El Paso arbitration case

A recent case from West Texas reminds us yet again that lawyers representing employees fight tooth and nail to keep their clients out of arbitration—and to get their claims to a jury of their peers.

Slip and fall

Mary Horton Keele worked at a medical facility in El Paso and slipped and fell because of water on the floor of a patient’s room. The facility didn’t subscribe to workers’ compensation—it had an Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA)-based employee injury plan instead, which Texas allows—so she was free to file a negligence lawsuit in state court.

The company asked the court to compel arbitration, but the court denied its request. No arbitration here, so off to an El Paso jury!

Here was the agreement the company relied on:

I also acknowledge that this Summary Plan Description (SPD) includes a mandatory company policy that claims or disputes relating to the cause of an on-the-job injury . . . must be submitted to an arbitrator rather than a judge and jury. I understand that by receiving this SPD and becoming (or continuing my employment) with the Company . . . I am accepting and agreeing to comply with these arbitration requirements.