Dillon v. BMO Harris Bank, N.A. (Fourth Circuit)

The defendants in this case, including our client, moved to compel the plaintiff to arbitrate his claims on an individual basis as required by the arbitration provisions in his loan agreements.  The plaintiff objected to the admissibility of his arbitration agreements, and the district court denied the defendants’ motions, concluding that the defendants had not properly authenticated those agreements with declarations.  When the defendants renewed their requests for arbitration and provided the declarations that the district court appeared to be requesting, the district court denied those renewed motions as improper requests for reconsideration without considering their merits.  The Fourth Circuit vacated that ruling and ordered the district court to rule on the merits of our requests for arbitration.  The Fourth Circuit explained that no authority limits a party to filing only one motion under the Federal Arbitration Act and that imposing such a limit is contrary to the statute’s strong presumptions in favor of arbitration and against waiver of the right to arbitrate.