Arbitrator, Not Court, Should Decide Whether Class Arbitration is Available, N.Y. Federal Judge Rules

NEW YORK — An arbitrator, rather than the court, should decide whether a class action brought against five major telecommunication providers should be resolved through class arbitration, rather than individual arbitration, a New York federal judge has ruled.

On May 29, Judge Alison J. Nathan of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York adopted the U.S. Supreme Court’s reasoning in Green Tree Fin. Corp. v. Bazzle (539 U.S. 444 [2003]), in which it held that the question of whether class arbitration is allowed by an agreement that is "silent" on the issue is for the arbitrator …