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Delaware Court of Chancery Proposes Draft Arbitration Rules

By Francis G. X. Pileggi, Esq.

The Delaware Court of Chancery is considering a new procedure for new cases to be filed with the Court for the purpose of being arbitrated by a member of the Court. The draft rules are only preliminary proposals subject to change. Chancellor William Chandler, III discussed the draft rules in a presentation to members of the Delaware Bar today. Here  is a copy of the current version of the draft proposed Arbitration Rules for the Delaware Court of Chancery. A few of the highlights of the embryonic concept include:

• As a prerequisite for cases seeking money damages, the amount in controversy must exceed one million dollars.
• The arbitrator will be a permanent sitting member of the Court.
• A preliminary conference will be scheduled within 10 days of the commencement of the case to address procedural and substantive aspects of the case.
• The statutory authority for the parties to consent to this procedure is 10 Del. C. Section 349.
• The arbitration hearing will generally "occur no later than 90 days following receipt of the petition". See Proposed Del. Ch. Ct. R. 97(c).
• The arbitration proceedings will be confidential.
• Discovery and motion practice are expected to be limited.
• Appeals will be directly to the Delaware Supreme Court
• Estimated fees are expected to be $12,000 for filing the petition, and $6,000 for each day of arbitration (to be shared by the parties).

Compare generally: 10 Del. C. Section 346 (regarding mediation of technology disputes) and 10 Del. C. Section 347 (mediation of business disputes).

Full post as published by Delaware Corporate and Commercial Litigation Blog on December 04, 2009 (boomark / email).