If there’s a lesson to be learned from Ashley Brigham Patten v. M. Brett Johnson, it’s that even if an arbitrator and a law firm fail to disclose their prior relationships during an ADR proceeding—including the gifting of a ticket to an NBA basketball game and a wine basket—you can’t sue them later for fraud and breach of contract.
On Aug. 1, the Texas Supreme Court denied a petition for review in Patten, a case in which two Dallas lawyers sued Fish & Richardson, a firm client, two lawyers associated with the firm, JAMS and a JAMS arbitrator. The lawyers had appealed an April 15, 2014, decision by Dallas’ Fifth Court of Appeals that dismissed the fraud and breach of contract claims. [See "Fifth Court Tosses Suit Against Lawyers, Arbitrator," Texas Lawyer, April 28, 2014, page 1.]
