Baker v. Bristol Care, Inc.

450 S.W.3d 770 (2014)

From our private database of 46,200+ case briefs, written and edited by humans—never with AI.

Baker v. Bristol Care, Inc.

Missouri Supreme Court
450 S.W.3d 770 (2014)

Facts

Carla Baker (plaintiff) was an hourly employee of Bristol Care, Inc. (Bristol) (defendant) until Bristol promoted Baker to an administrative position. In connection with her promotion, Baker and Bristol signed an arbitration agreement, which recited that Bristol’s consideration for Baker’s agreement to arbitration would be Baker’s continued employment and Bristol’s promise to arbitrate. However, the arbitration agreement also stated that (1) it was not an employment contract, (2) it did not change Baker’s at-will status, (3) either party could terminate Baker’s employment at any time for any reason, and (4) Bristol had the right to change or revoke the arbitration agreement with 30 days’ written notice. Baker and Bristol also signed an employment agreement, which provided that Baker’s employment would continue indefinitely unless she gave 60 days’ notice or unless Bristol terminated her employment with five days’ written notice or without notice (and potentially with five days’ pay) in certain situations. After Bristol fired Baker, Baker filed a class-action lawsuit against Bristol and David Furnell (defendant), seeking allegedly unpaid overtime. Bristol and Furnell moved to compel arbitration, which the circuit court denied. Bristol and Furnell appealed. In response, Baker argued that the arbitration agreement was not supported by consideration and thus was unenforceable because (1) she remained an at-will employee despite the employment agreement, (2) continued at-will employment was not consideration, and (3) Bristol’s promise to arbitrate was illusory due to Bristol’s unilateral right to change or revoke the arbitration agreement.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Teitelman, J.)

Dissent (Wilson, J.)

What to do next…

  1. Unlock this case brief with a free (no-commitment) trial membership of Quimbee.

    You’ll be in good company: Quimbee is one of the most widely used and trusted sites for law students, serving more than 796,000 law students since 2011. Some law schools—such as Yale, Berkeley, and Northwestern—even subscribe directly to Quimbee for all their law students.

    Unlock this case briefRead our student testimonials
  2. Learn more about Quimbee’s unique (and proven) approach to achieving great grades at law school.

    Quimbee is a company hell-bent on one thing: helping you get an “A” in every course you take in law school, so you can graduate at the top of your class and get a high-paying law job. We’re not just a study aid for law students; we’re the study aid for law students.

    Learn about our approachRead more about Quimbee

Here's why 796,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:

  • Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,200 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
  • The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
  • Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
  • Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership
Here's why 796,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
  • Reliable - written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students
  • The right length and amount of information - includes the facts, issue, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents
  • Access in your class - works on your mobile and tablet
  • 46,200 briefs - keyed to 988 casebooks
  • Uniform format for every case brief
  • Written in plain English - not in legalese and not just repeating the court's language
  • Massive library of related video lessons - and practice questions
  • Top-notch customer support

Access this case brief for FREE

With a 7-day free trial membership