United States / 29 July 1999 / United States, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit / Kahn Lucas Lancaster, Inc. v. Lark International Ltd. / 97-9436
| Country | United States |
| Court | United States, U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit |
| Date | 29 July 1999 |
| Parties | Kahn Lucas Lancaster, Inc. v. Lark International Ltd. |
| Case number | 97-9436 |
| Applicable NYC Provisions | II | II(2) |
| Languages | English |
| Summary | Kahn Lucas, an American company, appealed a decision of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York denying its motion to compel its purchasing agent in Hong Kong to arbitrate a dispute involving breach of contract, breach of warranty, negligence and breach of fiduciary duty. On appeal, the purchasing agent opposed the motion to compel arbitration on two grounds: (i) the arbitral provisions were not enforceable because the purchasing agent had not signed the purchase orders; and (ii) the arbitration provisions in the purchase orders were directed at the sellers or manufacturers, and not the purchasing agent. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit dismissed the motion to compel arbitration. The Court of Appeals held that under Article II(2) NYC, arbitration clauses in contracts had to be signed by the parties or had to be contained in an exchange of letters or telegrams. It stated that the arbitral clauses contained in purchase orders signed only by Kahn Lucas did not constitute an agreement within the meaning of the NYC. The Court did not consider it necessary to consider whether the arbitration provisions were directed at the manufacturer or the purchasing agent. |
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Attachment (1)
 Original Pending Adobe Acrobat PDF |
