Rosenthal v. Great Western Financial Securities Corp.
California Supreme Court
926 P.2d 1061 (1996)
- Written by Emily Pokora, JD
Facts
Twenty-three individuals (investors) (plaintiffs) held mutual fund investments with Great Western Financial Securities Corporation (Great Western). The investors were customers of a related company, Great Western Bank (bank), and incorrectly believed that their investments were insured by the bank. The investors lost investment amounts when the value declined and sued Great Western. Great Western moved to compel arbitration under the arbitration agreements entered with the investors. Great Western argued that the United States Arbitration Act (USAA) § 4 requiring a jury trial to determine the existence of an arbitration agreement was inapplicable in state court. The investors opposed the motion, arguing that the arbitration agreements were fraudulent and unenforceable. The trial court ruled that USAA § 4 did not apply to require a jury trial in state court but denied Great Western’s motion to compel arbitration based on evidence of fraud invalidating the arbitration agreement. Great Western appealed. The court of appeals reversed the trial court, holding that USAA § 4 applied and that a jury trial was required to determine the existence of the arbitration agreement and the presence of fraud. Great Western appealed.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Werdegar, J.)
What to do next…
Here's why 830,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,400 briefs, keyed to 994 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.
