Summary of Dave Leonard’s Arbitration Experience

Dave Leonard has been appointed to dozens of arbitrations since first qualifying for the American Arbitration Association’s Commercial Panel over 25 years ago. His experience includes numerous three-arbitrator panels, often where he acted as the tribunal panel Chair on complex cases handled under the AAA’s Rules for Large Complex Commercial Cases.

Dave believes that parties paying for the services of arbitration deserve to know the details of how their case was decided, so his practice generally is to prepare a reasoned award in any dispute unless the parties’ agreement or the parties themselves specify otherwise.

Specific Examples – Prior Arbitration Experience

Commercial Contract Disputes

  • The sole arbitrator selected by the parties in a complex business dispute involving financing and services for a group of long-term care facilities, complicated by a prior settlement with multiple contracts and guarantees, and alleged breaches of all. Defenses of the Respondents included claims of commercial impracticability and impossibility of performance, related in part to Medicare reimbursement procedures. Detailed reasoned award entered following an evidentiary hearing.
  • Sole arbitrator on a dispute under ICDR Rules over a master supply agreement between an international chemical company and a commercial business in California with operations in multiple locations and states. Following the entry of a comprehensive order on preliminary motions by both parties, the case settled during an evidentiary hearing conducted remotely and involving counsel and witnesses in three states and one foreign country.
  • Sole arbitrator in claims of breach of contract involving a major international hotel chain and a vendor of commercial HVAC and boiler equipment and controls.
  • Sole arbitrator in dispute between a regional trucking company and a national package delivery service company alleging breach of contract and several business torts. The claim included disputes over the arbitrability of certain issues, questions of juridical authority of dissolved corporations, and challenges to contractual disclaimers, limitations of liability, and dispute limitation periods as unconscionable and against public policy. Also at issue were claims of tolling of contract limitation periods based on business tort and conspiracy allegations, the discovery rule, and claims of estoppel. The case was resolved following a detailed ruling on preliminary motions and direction on several discovery disputes in preparation for the evidentiary hearing.
  • Sole arbitrator in dispute through the ICDR between a non-US company acting as an on-line seller and an international web-based sales platform. Detailed written opinion following written proofs and oral argument from counsel.
  • Sole arbitrator appointed in ICDR governed dispute involving a company staffing services agreement, including parallel federal court litigation and challenges to arbitrability.
  • Appointed arbitrator for a dispute involving contract and performance issues under a freight transportation contract.

Consumer Disputes

  • Appointed as the sole arbitrator for numerous consumer disputes, including both direct consumer actions brought under the commercial rules, and consumer actions brought under the AAA’s Consumer Arbitration Rules. These claims have included disputes with companies providing goods or services to consumers; including electronic and telecommunications services, home repair or protection services, vendors of other home and property related services; credit card and credit finance disputes, disputes over auto and other product leases and purchases, and insurance contracts, among others. The claims include those where the consumer is represented by an attorney, and others where the consumer is proceeding without a lawyer ( pro se).

Finance and Financial Services

  • Appointed to Panel hearing dispute involving subsidiaries of major banks, business “finders” and brokers, and a national consumer finance company in the auto loan and lease securitization market. The dispute involved contract and performance issues, finder’s fees, and contract servicing fees. The matter went to final award following a full evidentiary hearing.
  • Sole arbitrator in a dispute involving enforcement of a financial guarantee.
  • Sole arbitrator - Small business factoring agreement and dispute over breach of payment clauses.
  • Sole arbitrator in numerous arbitrations involving disputes over alleged breaches of various types of small business financing agreements and factoring agreements.

Fire and Casualty

  • Sole arbitrator in technical fire loss claim involving multiple theories of origin and spread and related engineering experts and financial lost profits experts. Business issues included corporate authority and piercing the corporate veil under several states’ laws. Detailed reasoned orders were entered following preliminary motions and after the final evidentiary hearing.

Health Care

  • Chair of Panel arbitrating a dispute between a doctors’ group and a major health care insurer involving complex rate and formulary (approved pharmaceuticals) issues.
  • Sole arbitrator appointed to a dispute involving medical systems software company and its customer, a surgical center, involving claims of breach of contract, repudiation of the contract, and counterclaims for negligent performance, breach of contract, and related damages.

Insurance – Agency Issues

  • Panel Chair in dispute among companies with multiple affiliates having overlapping ownership and performance issues, involved in a managing agent and sales roles for complex insurance products over the course of a decade, detailed reasoned award after a full evidentiary hearing.
  • Appointed sole arbitrator in a dispute between managing agent and multi-state adjuster involving claims of breach of contract, breach of authority, and negligent administration, among others.
  • Arbitration Panel member in dispute between the general managing agent in Texas and an insurance agency in Oklahoma with a contract to solicit customers for an insurance product, involving alleged unpaid premium payments and fees.
  • Dispute involving insurance agent contract issues – performance, authority, and payment.

Insurance – Coverage Issues

  • Arbitrator in a number of contract disputes involving coverage issues with individual and company customers.

Insurance – Inter-company Contracts

  • Sole arbitrator on a dispute involving a managing agent for a workers compensation insurer and an insurance customer, involving rate determinations and payments. A detailed award was entered following the evidentiary hearing.
  • Arbitration Panel member in dispute over multi-year marketing and warranty servicing platform underwritten by an insurer later acquired and with certain interests passing to reinsurers. Claims included breach of contract and fraud, and also involved changes in ownership interests and interim settlements that were later disputed.

Manufacturing

  • Panel member on arbitration between US company in bankruptcy (prosecuted by the Trustee) and a foreign company involving breach of contractual obligations relating to the production of parts in the US for a regulated firearms product and seeking damages arising therefrom under the UCC. Issues included questions of the existence of an enforceable contract, an interim accord and satisfaction on certain issues, and a claim of repudiation. A Reasoned Award entered following a full evidentiary hearing.
  • Arbitration Panel – Case involved complex industrial processes and specialized equipment—disputes over contract, warranty, engineering, and operations issues related to production problems and alleged failures of machines to deliver the product as represented.
  • Panel member in arbitration involving industrial dyeing equipment and disputes over the formulation and efficacy of different dyes and processing environment parameters, with claims alleging failures compared with anticipated production and resulting business losses.

Mergers and Acquisitions

  • Chair of panel appointed for a complex financial dispute under multi-year earn-out provisions of an asset purchase agreement. The dispute involved contract interpretation, product operation, audit rights, and questions of patent interpretation as applied to the revenue calculations. Detailed reasoned award entered following an evidentiary hearing.

Professionals and Services

  • Arbitration Panel appointed for dispute including claims of breach of contract, breach of professional standards, and overcharging involving a law firm and major accounting firm.
  • Arbitration Panel handling dispute among national plaintiffs’ counsel over fees awarded in settlement of a class action.
  • Sole arbitrator in a dispute between a law firm and a former client.

Small Business - Governance Contracts and Business Torts

  • Appointed as an Emergency Arbitrator under AAA Rule 38, during the period prior to seating a full panel, to address allegations involving critical business decisions necessary for the financial health of the company. The dispute involved decisions to be made in pending third-party lawsuits and alleged conduct between the parties threatening normal operations. At issue were conflicting claims of company ownership and control. The role of the emergency arbitrator involved analysis of multiple agreements and prior claims and settlements in order to guide the parties to a place of stability pending the seating of the full panel and hearing on the merits. A detailed analysis and order was issued in less than a week from the date of appointment.
  • Panel member in dispute between estate of deceased physician and surviving partner in the practice, including claims of breach of fiduciary duty, mismanagement, and claims related to the distribution of key man life insurance.
  • Sole arbitrator in a contract dispute with unfair practices claims involving proprietary stenographer technology.
  • Sole arbitrator in small business factoring agreement dispute over breach of payment clauses.
  • Sole arbitrator in dispute involving vendor services contract and small business owner. Detailed opinion issued following written proofs of claims.

Court-Appointed Neutral Services

  • Appointed as a Court Appointed Neutral (Special Master) by a Georgia Superior Court Judge to handle extensive discovery disputes between former business partners in litigation over a business breakup.

Technology – Software and Related Systems Disputes

  • Sole arbitrator in a dispute involving breach of contract and unjust enrichment claims under an agreement providing for maintenance (including software) and repair of both owned and third-party devices used in shipping and package tracking.
  • Sole arbitrator appointed in a dispute involving claims of breach of contract and quantum meruit relating to computer technology consulting and maintenance agreements and related statements of work covering a company's change in operating systems and related upgrading of database and operations functions of an existing customer sales and billing system.
  • Chair of Panel appointed in dispute between software development company and customer seeking automated insurance underwriting and sales software. Included were legal issues involving simultaneous federal court litigation and alleged breaches of subscription services and consulting services agreements. Counterclaims included misrepresentation and fraud. Case settled following Panel’s detailed decision on dispositive motions relating to contract rights and defenses.
  • Panel member in a dispute involving claims of breach of contract, fraud, and unjust enrichment in the development and marketing of technology designed to map and monitor operations and performance of government utilities.
  • Sole arbitrator in dispute over software development contract, including claims of breach and performance issues. Detailed reasoned award following a full evidentiary hearing.
  • Sole arbitrator appointed in dispute between a provider of medical billing and collection software and its customer, a regional surgical center. The respondent asserted breaches of contract and failure of compliance by the software provider, alleging negligence, poor training, and incompetence in its staffing and services, all as providing grounds for cancellation for cause. The claim also included challenges to jurisdiction of the arbitration and arbitrability of certain issues. The case was settled following a comprehensive initial hearing and scheduling conference.

Technology – Telecommunications

  • Sole arbitrator in ICDR arbitration involving mobile phone online gaming and other services and related advertising, and disputes over revenue and alleged contract breaches involving performance in multiple countries. Detailed reasoned award following a full evidentiary hearing.
  • Sole arbitrator appointed on complex telecommunications technology dispute involving multiple contracts and licensing agreements, preceded by questions of arbitrability of a dispute involving performance under contracts with differing arbitration terms. Case resolved following detailed preliminary hearing and entry of scheduling order to address arbitrability issues.
  • Arbitrator in several disputes involving claims of breach of contract, failure of performance, and fraud, involving computer technology, telecommunications, and various technical service companies and their commercial customers.