BELLSOUTH MOBILITY LLC, APPELLANT,
v.
DANIEL J. CHRISTOPHER, ON BEHALF OF HIMSELF AND A CLASS OF SIMILARLY SITUATED PERSONS, APPELLEE
AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.
The court held that the arbitration provision was potentially unconscionable, but reversal was required because the trial court lacked sufficient evidence to support its findings of unconscionability.
[1] A court may decline to enforce a contract on the grounds that it is procedurally and substantively unconscionable.
[2] Procedural unconscionability relates to the manner in which a contract was entered, considering factors such as the parties' relative bargaining power and their ability t…
Previewing 2 of 5 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligencePlaintiff filed a class action suit challenging BellSouth's alleged overcharging for wireless service, based on a contract with an arbitration clause.…
The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.
Explore caselaw by topic → Browse Class Action Waiver cases and more on FLexlaw
POLEN, C.J.
BellSouth Mobility LLC (“BellSouth”) appeals from a non-final order denying its motion to dismiss or compel arbitration. We reverse.
Daniel Christopher filed an action seeking class certification to challenge Bell-south’s allegedly overcharging customers for wireless telephone service. Pursuant to the standard form contract at issue, BellSouth and its subscriber agreed to USE THEIR BEST EFFORTS TO SETTLE ANY DISPUTE OR CLAIM ARISING FROM OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT. TO ACCOMPLISH THIS, THEY SHALL NEGOTIATE WITH EACH OTHER IN GOOD FAITH. IF COMPANY AND CUSTOMER DO NOT REACH AGREEMENT WITHIN 30 DAYS, INSTEAD OF SUING IN COURT, COMPANY AND CUSTOMER AGREE TO ARBITRATE ANY AND ALL DISPUTES AND CLAIMS (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO CLAIMS BASED ON OR ARISING FROM AN ALLEGED TORT) ARISING OUT OF OR RELATING TO THIS AGREEMENT....
The contract also provided that the arbitrator could not award punitive damages and limited recovery by the customer to actual damages. It further precluded class action relief.
BellSouth moved to dismiss the suit and compel arbitration. The court denied Bell-south’s motion on the ground that the arbitration provision was unconscionable because, among other reasons, Christopher had no true ability to bargain, it was not practical for him to seek another provider of services, and it prevented Christopher from seeking punitive damages, injunctive or declaratory relief, or class relief. Other than the contract at issue, no evidence was presented to support these findings.
Although it is undisputed that this action is subject to the arbitration provision of the contract at issue, BellSouth disputes that the provision is unconscionable. Courts may properly decline to enforce a contract on the ground that it is procedurally and substantively unconscionable. Powertel, Inc. v. Bexley, 743 So. 2d 570 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999), rev. den., 763 So. 2d 1044 (Fla.2000).
Procedural uncon-scionability “relates to the manner in which the contract was entered and it involves consideration of such issues as the relative bargaining power of the parties and their ability to know and understand the disputed contract terms.” Id. at 574.
A court might find that a contract is procedurally unconscionable if important terms were “hidden in a maze of fine print and minimized by deceptive sales practices.” Id. (citation omitted); see also Kohl v. Bay Colony Club Condominium, Inc., 398 So. 2d 865, 868 (Fla. 4th DCA)(“Under the ‘procedural’ rubric come those factors bearing upon ... the ‘real and voluntary meeting of the minds’ of the contracting parties: age, education, intelligence, business acumen and experience, relative bargaining power, who drafted the contract, whether the terms were explained to the weaker party, whether alterations in the printed terms were possible, whether there were alternative sources of supply for the goods in question.”) (citation omitted), rev. den., 408 So. 2d 1094 (Fla.1981).
In contrast, substantive unconseionability focuses on the agreement itself and looks to whether the terms of the contract are unreasonable and unfair. Powertel, 743 So. 2d at 574 (citation omitted).
The contract on its face supports that the arbitration clause is, at a minimum, substantively unconscionable because it requires customers to give up many specific legal remedies. For instance, it expressly limits Bellsouth’s liability to actual damages, even if its conduct rises to the level of outrageousness required to assess punitive damages. It also expressly removes Bellsouth’s exposure to a class action suit which, in this case, may be warranted due to the numerosity of the small claims asserted, the common questions of law and fact raised by the claims, the typicality of the claims, and Christopher’s status as a fair representative of the class. See Fla. R. Civ. P. 1.220(a) (discussing the prerequisites to class representation).
Moreover, the substance of the arbitration provision seems unduly unfair. Although customers are bound to arbitration, BellSouth still has the option of pursuing court action in some instances, including the collection of a debt. In short, the clause gives BellSouth an unfair advantage.
We are precluded from affirming, however, because there was no evidence presented as to whether Christopher bargained for this provision and knowingly gave up these rights. There likewise was no evidence to support the trial court’s findings as to unavailability, or difficulty in obtaining, competing services, or transferring phone numbers, equipment and so on. The trial court made determinations which, although they seem to make sense, are not supported by record evidence. We hold an evidentiary hearing is, thus, required.
REVERSED AND REMANDED for an evidentiary hearing.
STONE and GROSS, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By (14 total)
-
Gainesville Health Care Ctr., Inc. v. Weston, 857 So. 2d 278 (Fla. 1st DCA 2003)…he Law of Contracts § 1632 (3d ed.1972)). Accord Fotomat, 464 So. 2d at 630. Before a court may hold a contract unconscionable, it must find that it is both procedurally and substantively unconscionable. E.g., Bellsouth Mobility LLC v. Christopher, 819 So. 2d 171, 173 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002); Powertel, 743 So. 2d at 574; Complete Interiors, Inc. v. Behan, 558 So. 2d 48, 52 (Fla. 5th DCA 1990); Steinhardt, 422 So. 2d at 889; Kohl, 398 So. 2d at 867. To determine whether a contract is procedurally unconscionable,…
-
Betzaida Fonte v. AT&T Wireless Servs., Inc., 903 So. 2d 1019 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005)…Robinson, 855 So. 2d 726 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003); Consol. Resources Healthcare Fund I, Ltd. v. Fenelus, 853 So. 2d 500 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003); Chapman v. King Motor Co. of So. Fla., 833 So. 2d 820 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003); BellSouth Mobility LLC v. Christopher, 819 So. 2d 171 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002); Gainesville Health Care, 857 So. 2d 278; Powertel, Inc. v. Bexley, 743 So. 2d 570 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999); see also Romano v. Manor Care, Inc., 861 So. 2d 59 (Fla. 4th DCA 2003)(dis-cussing unconscionability in dicta). However, many…
-
Blankfeld v. Richmond Health Care, Inc., 902 So. 2d 296 (Fla. 4th DCA 2005)…or substantive unconscionability by showing that “the terms of the contract are unreasonable and unfair.” 743 So. 2d at 574. In Romano, Richmond Healthcare, Inc. v. Digati, 878 So. 2d 388 (Fla. 4th DCA 2004), Bellsouth Mobility, LLC v. Christopher, 819 So. 2d 171 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002), and Chapman v. King Motor, 833 So. 2d 820 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002), all cases involving remedial statutes, we engaged in an unconscionability analysis. We now clarify that holding a contractual provision unenforceable because it defe…
Previewing 3 of 14 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited
- Powertel, Inc. v. Bexley, 743 So. 2d 570 (Fla. 1st DCA 1999)
- Kohl v. BAY Colony Club Condo., Inc., 398 So. 2d 865 (Fla. 4th DCA 1981)