Can Amtrak Force You to Arbitrate Your Personal Injury Claim?
When you purchase a ticket for an event or transportation, there is often a litany of fine print outlining your legal rights–or lack thereof–in the event you sustain a personal injury in connection with your purchase. For example, it is common practice in the cruise ship industry for tickets to include language requiring litigation of any personal injury claim take place in Miami’s federal court. Other businesses go a step further and demand a customer waive their right to sue altogether in favor of binding arbitration.
Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution where the parties select a private arbitrator to hear evidence and render a decision. Victims are often at a disadvantage in these proceedings for many reasons. They lose their right to have their case heard by a jury. The discovery process is often streamlined, limiting a victim’s ability to obtain important evidence of the defendant’s negligence. And there are limited rights to appeal an unfavorable decision. Indeed, courts will only set aside an arbitration decision under limited circumstances.
Miami Judge Sends Passenger’s Slip and Fall Case to Arbitration
It may surprise you to learn that even publicly owned entities insist upon arbitration clauses when offering services to the public. For example, a federal judge here in Miami recently held that a woman could not sue Amtrak–the National Passenger Railroad Corporation owned by the United States government–because of an arbitration clause in her ticket.
The case, Tucker v. The National Passenger Railroad Corporation, involved a plaintiff who purchased a ticket for travel between South Carolina and West Palm Beach, Florida. She bought her ticket online, which required her to check a box stating she accepted the “terms and conditions” of the ticket, which included a binding arbitration agreement. The terms expressly stated that any “tort claims” or “common law” claims would be subject to arbitration.
The plaintiff took her trip as scheduled on the ticket. When she arrived at West Palm Beach, she slipped and fell on some wet metal stairs on Amtrak’s property. She subsequently filed a personal injury lawsuit in Miami federal court, alleging negligence on the part of Amtrak in failing to properly maintain the stairs. Amtrak replied by moving to enforce the arbitration agreement in the plaintiff’s ticket.
The judge sided with Amtrak, holding that by clicking the terms and conditions checkbox when she purchased her ticket, the plaintiff “agreed to arbitrate this dispute.” This includes arbitration of whether the plaintiff’s claims are subject to arbitration in the first place. The plaintiff argued the arbitration agreement itself was “unconscionable,” but the judge said it was up to the arbitrator to hear and decide that issue as well.
Contact a Miami Slip & Fall Lawyer Today
Even businesses not protected by arbitration agreements can still put up a substantial legal fight when a customer is injured on their property. That is why it is important to work with an experienced Miami slip and fall lawyer who can represent you in such cases. Contact Pita Weber Del Prado in Miami today at 305-670-2889 to schedule a free consultation.
Source:
scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=2667676789179992061
