Challenging an Arbitration Award – A Trial Lawyer s Guide to Vacatur

Losing an arbitration is not the same as losing at trial. There is no right to appeal. Courts may confirm awards even in the face of erroneous findings of fact and in some instances, misapplied law. Dana Welch of Welch ADR and Jiyun Cameron Lee of Folger Levin LLP walk through the narrow grounds that actually support vacatur under both the Federal Arbitration Act and the California Arbitration Act, including exceeding arbitral powers, evident partiality and nondisclosure, refusal to hear material evidence, manifest disregard of the law, and awards that contravene public policy. They also cover the deadlines that resolve most petitions before anyone reaches the merits, including the CAA's 100-day window after Law Finance v. Key and the FAA's three-month service requirement.