Posts

Showing posts from November, 2017

Is an Employee's Inability to Read or Understand English a Defense to a Motion to Compel Arbitration?

According to the Dallas Court of Appeals, the short answer is that absent fraud or trickery, an employee's inability to read or comprehend English is not a defense to a motion to compel arbitration where the employee executed an English version of an acknowledgment which referenced the arbitration agreement.  MiCocina, Ltd D/B/A Taco Diner v. Jose Balderas-Villanueva , No. 05-16-01507-CV (Oct. 27, 2017).  http://www.search.txcourts.gov/Case.aspx?cn=05-16-01507-CV&coa=coa05   In this case, the employee, who did not read or speak English, signed a one-page document titled, "Acknowledgment of Receipt of Employee Handbook," written in English, which memorialized receipt of the Mutual Agreement to Arbitrate, a summary description of the work-related injury plan, a department of insurance non-subscriber form, and a company handbook.  Neither the employer nor the employee signed the Mutual Agreement to Arbitrate referenced in the Acknowledgment. Thereafter, the employee