BO G. GREKTORP, ANITA W. GREKTORP, AND MOVADO REALTY, INC., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, APPELLANTS,
v.
CITY TOWERS OF FLORIDA, INC., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, AND CITY GARDENS OF INDIAN ROCKS, INC., A FLORIDA CORPORATION, APPELLEES
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Grektorp appeals a trial court order denying his motion to compel arbitration of breach of fiduciary duty claims arising from his employment contract. The appellate court reverses, holding that the arbitration clause's broad language covering "any controversy" involving the contract's terms should be construed to favor arbitration.
The arbitration clause's broad language covering "any controversy...involving the construction or application of any of the terms, provisions, or conditions of this Agreement" reflects a broad arbitration agreement that covers the breach of fiduciary duty claims. Grektorp's motion to compel arbitration should be granted. The motion to abate by Anita Grektorp and Movado Realty must be reconsidered on remand in light of section 682.03(3), Florida Statutes.
[1] The denial of a motion to dismiss is not an appealable order.
[2] Doubts concerning the scope of arbitration clauses should generally be resolved in favor of arbitration.
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Arbitration agreements are a favored means of dispute resolution, and doubts concerning the scope of arbitration clauses should generally be resolved in favor of arbitration.”
Establishes the legal principle that courts should interpret arbitration clauses broadly and resolve ambiguities in favor of arbitration
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceBo Grektorp was employed under a contract containing an arbitration clause. City Towers of Florida, Inc. and City Gardens of Indian Rocks, Inc. filed …
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CAMPBELL, Acting Chief Judge.
Appellant, Bo G. Grektorp, appeals the nonfinal order that denied his motion to compel arbitration. Appellants, Anita Grektorp and Movado Realty, Inc., appeal that portion of the same order that denied their motion to abate the proceedings pending arbitration. Although appellants also appeal that portion of the nonfinal order that denied their motion to dismiss, we do not address that issue since the denial of a motion to dismiss is not an appealable order. Appellees, City Towers of Florida, Inc. and City Gardens of Indian Rocks, Inc., filed an amended complaint alleging that City Towers’ president, Bo Grektorp, had breached .his fiduciary duties to them, which arose out of his employment contract, by engaging in real estate transactions with his wife, Anita, and with Movado Realty, Inc., a corporation owned by the Grektorps, and by receiving commissions from those dealings contrary to the contractual interests of appellees.
Bo Grektorp moved to compel arbitration of appellees’ claims against him pursuant to an arbitration clause contained in his employment contract. That clause provides that “any controversy between the Employee and Employer involving the construction or application of any of the terms, provisions, or conditions of this Agreement shall on the written request of either party served be submitted to arbitration as per rules and regulations of the American Arbitration Association.” The court denied appellant’s motion to compel arbitration.
Arbitration agreements are a favored means of dispute resolution, and doubts concerning the scope of arbitration clauses should generally be resolved in favor of arbitration. CSE, Inc. v. Barron, 620 So. 2d 808, 809 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993). The scope of an arbitration clause depends on the language used in the clause. We construe the arbitration clause here, insofar as it refers to “any controversy ... involving the construction or application of any of the terms, provisions, or conditions of this Agreement ...,” to reflect a broad arbitration agreement. (Emphasis added.) See CSE, Inc. We, therefore, reverse that portion of the order on appeal that denied appellant Bo Grektorp’s motion to compel arbitration.
As to the appeal by appellants Anita Grektorp and Movado Realty, Inc. of the denial of their motion to abate, that matter is normally reviewable only by certiorari. However, due to the posture of this case and the fact that the matters that are the subject of this appeal all arise out of the same nonfi-nal order, we quash that portion of the order denying the motion to abate and, on remand, direct that that motion be reconsidered in light of this opinion and section 682.03(3), Florida Statutes (1991).
ALTENBERND and QUINCE, JJ., concur.
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Gainesville Health Care Ctr., Inc. v. Weston, 857 So. 2d 278 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003)…o an otherwise valid arbitration agreement. [*289] Arbitration agreements are a favored means of dispute resolution, and doubts concerning their scope should generally be resolved in favor of arbitration. E.g., Grektorp v. City Towers of Fla., Inc., 644 So. 2d 613, 614 (Fla. 2d DCA 1994). V. The burden was on appellee to present evidence sufficient to establish that the arbitration provision is unconscionable and, therefore, unenforceable. Because that burden was not carried and appellee’s alternative argum…
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Scottsdale Ins. Co. v. Desalvo, 666 So. 2d 944 (Fla. 1st DCA 1995)…resolution; and with the principle that ambiguities regarding the scope of arbitration should be resolved in favor of arbitration. E.g., Regency Group, Inc. v. McDaniels, 647 So. 2d 192 (Fla. 1st DCA 1994); Grektorp v. City Towers of Florida, Inc., 644 So. 2d 613 (Fla. 2d DCA 1994). It is, moreover, consistent with the following language from New Amsterdam Casualty Co. v. J.H. Blackshear, Inc., 116 Fla. 289, 291,156 So. 695, 696 (1934): [S]ince the object of the appraisal clause is merely to fix the amount…
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Relinger v. FOX, 55 So. 3d 638 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011)…iscovery orders stem from the circuit court’s decision to grant abatement, and we are confident that the court will reconsider the [*641] motions to compel and for protective order in light of our decision. See Grektorp v. City Towers of Fla., Inc., 644 So. 2d 613, 614 (Fla. 2d DCA 1994) (reversing denial of motion to compel arbitration and directing reconsideration of motion to abate, which arose out of same nonfinal order). Petition granted; orders quashed. WALLACE and MORRIS, JJ., Concur.…
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- CSE, Inc. v. Barron, 620 So. 2d 808 (Fla. 2d DCA 1993)