Fla. Federal Judge Sends ‘Unconscionable’ Question to Arbitrator

MIAMI — The question of whether an arbitration clause is unconscionable is one for the arbitrator, not the court, to decide, a Florida federal judge has ruled in an assisted living franchise dispute. Senior Services of Palm Beach LLC v. ABCSP Inc., No. 12-80226 (S.D. Fla.).

Judge James I. Cohn of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida added in the June 7 order that if the question were presented to the court, he would find that the clause is neither procedurally nor substantively unconscionable.

In March 2009, ABCSP Inc., a California corporation that franchises assisted living …