WILLIAM CARR, Indiv. and on Behalf of All Others Similarly Situated, Appellee, v. GATEWAY, INC., Appellant., 241 Ill. 2d 15

Summary

The court agreed with those federal courts that held § 5 (9 U.S.C.S. § 5 (2006)) of the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) may be applied to name a substitute arbitrator where the parties' designated arbitral forum failed, unless the designation of the arbitral forum was integral to the parties' agreement to arbitrate. The FAA promoted a liberal federal policy favoring arbitration as an alternate dispute resolution mechanism. To that end, § 5 permitted the naming of a substitute arbitrator where, for any reason, there had been a lapse, inter alia, in the naming of an arbitrator. Where the designation of an arbitral forum was only an ancillary, logistical concern and the primary consideration was the intent to arbitrate disputes, allowing a court to appoint a substitute arbitrator fulfilled the parties' agreement to arbitrate. A reading of the penalty provision of the arbitration agreement clearly indicated that the designation of the National Arbitration Forum (NAF) as the arbitral forum ...