Agreement Containing Merger Clause Supersedes Arbitration Clause, Fla. Appeals Court Rules

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — A Florida trial court properly ruled that an agreement containing a merger clause but no arbitration clause supersedes a retail purchase agreement containing an arbitration clause; therefore there is no valid arbitration agreement exists, a state appellate court has ruled.

On Dec. 3, Judge Waddell A. Wallace of the Florida Court of Appeals, 1st District, affirmed that the Federal Arbitration Act does not govern the defendant’s motion to compel arbitration because there is no valid arbitration agreement.

In July 2010, HHH Motors LLP executed a Retail Purchase Agreement (RPA) with Jenny and Kristopher Holt for the purchase …