Appellant's Opening Brief, Lambert v. Tesla, 18-15203
Appellant's Opening Brief, Lambert v. Tesla, 18-15203
Appellant's Opening Brief, Lambert v. Tesla, 18-15203
No. 18-15203
__________________________________________________________________
DEWITT LAMBERT,
Plaintiff-Appellant,
v.
Defendant-Appellee.
26.1.
i
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Page
CORPORATE DISCLOSURE STATEMENT ......................................................... i
INTRODUCTION .....................................................................................................1
ISSUES PRESENTED...............................................................................................9
ARGUMENT ...........................................................................................................14
C. This Circuit Has Held That Gilmer Provides The Correct Test
For Determining Whether Arbitration Is Appropriate And
Authorized By Law ...................................................................19
ii
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CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................41
CERTIFICATE OF COMPLIANCE
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
ADDENDUM
iii
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TABLE OF AUTHORITIES
Page(s)
Cases
iv
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John Hancock Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Harris Trust & Sav. Bank,
510 U.S. 86 (1993) ........................................................................................ 17-18
v
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Statutes
Civil Rights Act of 1991, Pub. L. No. 102-166, 105 Stat. 1071 (1991)
......................................................................................... 1-2, 8, 12, 14, 16, 17, 20
Declaratory Judgment Act, 22 U.S.C. § 2201 .....................................................3, 10
vi
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Adjoa Artis Aiyetoro, Truth Matters: A Call for the American Bar
Association to Acknowledge Its Past and Make Reparations to
African Descendants, 18 GEO. MASON U. CIV. RTS. L.J. 51 (2007)................... 28
Cong. Globe, 39th Cong. 1st Sess. (1866) ............................................. 26-27, 30, 34
Danielle Tarantolo, From Employment to Contract: Section 1981 and
Antidiscrimination Law for the Independent Contractor Workforce,
116 Yale L.J. 170 (2006) .............................................................................. 30-31
Laurie Kratky Doré, Public Courts Versus Private Justice: It’s Time
to Let Some Sun Shine in on Alternative Dispute Resolution, 81
CHI.-KENT L. REV. 463, 490 (2006) ............................................................. 35-36
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INTRODUCTION
community to exclude the newly-freed slaves from the national economy through
agreement what they could not accomplish by public law. In response, Congress
enacted 42 U.S.C. § 1981, which gives all persons the right to sue in federal court
to protect their “enjoyment of all benefits, privileges, terms, and conditions of the
Section 1981 made two radical changes to previous contract law. First,
the demos, rather than the private party with the most bargaining power.
but instead a matter of public concern. Second, Congress placed jurisdiction for
oversight in the federal judiciary—not the States, and certainly not other private
parties. After all, if the party with the most bargaining power could pick its own
private judge by the same discriminatory contract, then Section 1981 was a dead
letter.
Seven score and five years later, Congress passed Section 118 as part of the
Civil Rights Act of 1991. The Act states, in part, “Where appropriate and to the
rights disputes. Pub. L. No. 102-166, § 118, 105 Stat. 1071, 1081 (1991). But, as
Lane Corp., 500 U.S. 20 (1991) (hereinafter, “Gilmer”), provides the test for
determining whether arbitration is appropriate for a statutory claim. It held that “all
statutory claims may not be appropriate for arbitration.” Id. at 26. To determine if a
statute’s claims are appropriate for arbitration, courts look to the statute’s text,
The text of the 1866 Act suggests a congressional intent not to allow waiver
of judicial forum. Congress enacted Section 1981 six decades before the Federal
forum in contravention of the prevailing norms of the time, it would have done so.
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contracting to public scrutiny, if parties could privately contract for their own
oversight.
Plaintiff and Appellant DeWitt Lambert seeks to have his Section 1981
claims for racial discrimination heard in federal court, as has been the right of all
persons in the United States since 1866. Accordingly, Mr. Lambert requests that
this court reverse its decision compelling arbitration and remand to the District
JURISDICTIONAL STATEMENT
This is an appeal from the final judgment of a United States district court;
this Court has jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291. As Plaintiff has brought
claims under federal statutes, 42 U.S.C. § 1981 and the Declaratory Judgment Act,
22 U.S.C. § 2201, the district court had jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1331.
The district court’s final order, dismissing all claims in the case, was entered on
January 8, 2018. Plaintiff filed his notice of appeal on February 7, 2018, making
The Federal Arbitration Act provides for an “immediate appeal of any ‘final
531 U.S. 79, 86 (2000). A final decision is one that “ends the litigation on the
merits and leaves nothing more for the court to do but execute the judgment.”
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Digital Equipment Corp. v. Desktop Direct, Inc., 511 U.S. 863, 867 (1994)
“notwithstanding that the dismissal was in favor of arbitration,” even if “the parties
Interactive Flight Techs., Inc. v. Swissair Swiss Air Transp. Co., 249 F.3d 1177,
STATUTORY AUTHORITIES
42 U.S.C. § 1981
(a) Statement of Equal Rights. All persons within the jurisdiction of the United
States shall have the same right in every State and Territory to make and
enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, give evidence, and to the full and equal
benefit of all laws and proceerity of persons and property as is enjoyed by
white citizens, and shall be subject to like punishment, pains, penalties,
taxes, licenses, and exactions of every kind, and to no other.
(b) “Make and enforce contracts defined.” For purposes of this section, the term
“make and enforce contracts” includes the making, performance,
modification, and termination of contracts, and the enjoyment of all benefits,
privileges, terms, and conditions of the contractual relationship.
(c) Protection against impairment. The rights protected by this section are
protected against impairment by nongovernmental discrimination and
impairment under color of State law.
An Act to protect all Persons in the United States in their Civil Rights, and furnish
the Means of their Vindication.
punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall have
the same right, in every State and Territory in the United States, to make and
enforce contracts, to sue, be parties, and give evidence, to inherit, purchase, lease,
sell, hold, and convey real and personal property, and to full and equal benefit of
all laws and proceedings for the security of person and property, as is enjoyed by
white citizens, and shall be subject to like punishment, pains, and penalties, and to
none other, any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, to the contrary
notwithstanding.
Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That any person who, under color of any law,
statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, shall subject, or cause to be subjected,
any inhabitant of any State or Territory to the deprivation of any right secured or
protected by this act, or to different punishment, pains, or penalties on account of
such person having at any time been held in a condition of slavery or involuntary
servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly
convicted, or by reason of his color or race, than is prescribed for the punishment
of white persons, shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and, on conviction,
shall be punished by fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, or imprisonment not
exceeding one year, or both, in the discretion of the court.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That the district courts of the United States,
within their respective districts, shall have, exclusively of the courts of the several
States, cognizance of all crimes and offences committed against the provisions of
this act, and also, concurrently with the circuit courts of the United States, of all
causes, civil and criminal, affecting persons who are denied or cannot enforce in
the courts or judicial tribunals of the State or locality where they may be any of the
rights secured to them by the first section of this act; and if any suit or prosecution,
civil or criminal, has been or shall be commenced in any State court, against any
such person, for any cause whatsoever, or against any officer, civil or military, or
other person, for any arrest or imprisonment, trespasses, or wrongs done or
committed by virtue or under color of authority derived from this act or the act
establishing a Bureau for the relief of Freedmen and Refugees, and all acts
amendatory thereof, or for refusing to do any act upon the ground that it would be
inconsistent with this act, such defendant shall have the right to remove such cause
for trial to the proper district or circuit court in the manner prescribed by the “Act
relating to habeas corpus and regulating judicial proceedings in certain cases,”
approved March three, eighteen hundred and sixty-three, and all acts amendatory
thereof. The jurisdiction in civil and criminal matters hereby conferred on the
district and circuit courts of the United States shall be exercised and enforced in
conformity with the laws of the United States, so far as such laws are suitable to
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carry the same into effect; but in all cases where such laws are not adapted to the
object, or are deficient in the provisions necessary to furnish suitable remedies and
punish offences against law, the common law, as modified and changed by the
constitution and statutes of the State wherein the court having jurisdiction of the
cause, civil or criminal, is held, so far as the same is not inconsistent with the
Constitution and laws of the United States, shall be extended to and govern said
courts in the trial and disposition of such cause, and, if of a criminal nature, in the
infliction of punishment on the party found guilty.
Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, That the district attorneys, marshals, and deputy
marshals of the United States, the commissioners appointed by the circuit and
territorial courts of the United States, with powers of arresting, imprisoning, or
bailing offenders against the laws of the United States, the officers and agents of
the Freedmen’s Bureau, and every other officer who may be specially empowered
by the President of the United States, shall be, and they are hereby, specially
authorized and required, at the expense of the United States, to institute
proceedings against all and every person who shall violate the provisions of this
act, and cause him or them to be arrested and imprisoned, or bailed, as the case
may be, for trial before such court of the United States or territorial court as by this
act has cognizance of the offence. And with a view to affording reasonable
protection to all persons in their constitutional rights of equality before the law,
without distinction of race or color, or previous condition of slavery or involuntary
servitude, except as a punishment for crime, whereof the party shall have been duly
convicted, and to the prompt discharge of the duties of this act, it shall be the duty
of the circuit courts of the United States and the superior courts of the Territories
of the United States, from time to time, to increase the number of commissioners,
so as to afford a speedy and convenient means for the arrest and examination of
persons charged with a violation of this act; and such commissioners are hereby
authorized and required to exercise and discharge all the powers and duties
conferred on them by this act, and the same duties with regard to offences created
by this act, as they are authorized by law to exercise with regard to other offences
against the laws of the United States.
Sec. 5. And be it further enacted, That it shall be the duty of all marshals and
deputy marshals to obey and execute all warrants and precepts issued under the
provisions of this act, when to them directed; and should any marshal or deputy
marshal refuse to receive such warrant or other process when tendered, or to use all
proper means diligently to execute the same, he shall, on conviction thereof, be
fined in the sum of one thousand dollars, to the use of the person upon whom the
accused is alleged to have committed the offense. And the better to enable the said
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Sec. 6. And be it further enacted, That any person who shall knowingly and
wilfully obstruct, hinder, or prevent any officer, or other person charged with the
execution of any warrant or process issued under the provisions of this act, or any
person or persons lawfully assisting him or them, from arresting any person for
whose apprehension such warrant or process may have been issued, or shall rescue
or attempt to rescue such person from the custody of the officer, other person or
persons, or those lawfully assisting as aforesaid, when so arrested pursuant to the
authority herein given and declared, or shall aid, abet, or assist any person so
arrested as aforesaid, directly or indirectly, to escape from the custody of the
officer or other person legally authorized as aforesaid, or shall harbor or conceal
any person for whose arrest a warrant or process shall have been issued as
aforesaid, so as to prevent his discovery and arrest after notice or knowledge of the
fact that a warrant has been issued for the apprehension of such person, shall, for
either of said offences, be subject to a fine not exceeding one thousand dollars, and
imprisonment not exceeding six months, by indictment and conviction before the
district court of the United States for the district in which said offense may have
been committed, or before the proper court of criminal jurisdiction, if committed
within any one of the organized Territories of the United States.
Sec. 7. And be it further enacted, That the district attorneys, the marshals, their
deputies, and the clerks of the said district and territorial courts shall be paid for
their services the like fees as may be allowed to them for similar services in other
cases; and in all cases where the proceedings are before a commissioner, he shall
be entitled to a fee of ten dollars in full for his services in each case, inclusive of all
services incident to such arrest and examination. The person or persons authorized
to execute the process to be issued by such commissioners for the arrest of
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offenders against the provisions of this act shall be entitled to a fee of five dollars
for each person he or they may arrest and take before any such commissioner as
aforesaid, with such other fees as may be deemed reasonable by such
commissioner for such other additional services as may be necessarily performed
by him or them, such as attending at the examination, keeping the prisoner in
custody, and providing him with food and lodging during his detention, and until
the final determination of such commissioner, and in general for performing such
other duties as may be required in the premises; such fees to be made up in
conformity with the fees usually charged by the officers of the courts of justice
within the proper district or county, as near as may be practicable, and paid out of
the Treasury of the United States on the certificate of the judge of the district
within which the arrest is made, and to be recoverable from the defendant as part
of the judgment in case of conviction.
Sec. 8. And be it further enacted, That whenever the President of the United States
shall have reason to believe that offences have been or are likely to be committed
against the provisions of this act within any judicial district, it shall be lawful for
him, in his discretion, to direct the judge, marshal, and district attorney of such
district to attend at such place within the district, and for such time as he may
designate, for the purpose of the more speedy arrest and trial of persons charged
with a violation of this act; and it shall be the duty of every judge or other officer,
when any such requisition shall be received by him, to attend at the place and for
the time therein designated.
Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That it shall be lawful for the President of the
United States, or such person as he may empower for that purpose, to employ such
part of the land or naval forces of the United States, or of the militia, as shall be
necessary to prevent the violation and enforce the due execution of this act.
Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, That upon all questions of law arising in any
cause under the provisions of this act a final appeal may be taken to the Supreme
Court of the United States.
Section 118 of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, Pub. L. No. 102-166, 105 Stat. 107
Where appropriate and to the extent authorized by law, the use of alternative
means of dispute resolution, including settlement negotiations, conciliation,
facilitation, mediation, factfinding, minitrials, and arbitration, is encouraged to
resolve disputes arising under the Acts or provisions of Federal law amended by
this title.
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ISSUES PRESENTED
contexts, instead of requiring the application of the Gilmer test to the underlying
2. Whether claims arising under the Civil Rights Act of 1866 are
exceptional grant of federal jurisdiction over all claims arising under the Act, and
the Act’s stated goals of guaranteeing plaintiffs access to the federal courts and
deterring discrimination.
following in his Complaint. ER 108. He moved across the United States from
Alabama to the Bay Area, believing that the move would offer him an opportunity
to advance in his career. ER 109. When he applied for, and was offered, a job with
accepted the job, signing a contract with Tesla. Included in Mr. Lambert’s contract
him, and insulted him. ER 112. When Mr. Lambert complained to Tesla’s upper
management and human resources department, Tesla not only failed to stop the
harassment, but rewarded his harassers with promotions while punishing Mr.
Lambert. ER 113-114.
As a result of the above, on September 15, 2017, Mr. Lambert filed suit
against Tesla in the United States District Court for the Northern District of
employment. ER 108. Mr. Lambert also brought a claim under the Declaratory
Judgment Act, 28 U.S.C. § 2201, seeking a declaration by the district court that
On October 30, 2017, Tesla moved to dismiss Mr. Lambert’s complaint with
prejudice, or, in the alternative, to compels the matter to arbitration. ER 91. Tesla
asserted that the arbitration agreement Mr. Lambert had signed was enforceable
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summary judgment as to his Declaratory Judgment Act Claim, Mr. Lambert argued
that the unique history of Section 1981, passed as part of the Civil Rights Act of
1866, rendered it inappropriate for arbitration under the test set forth in Gilmer v.
Lambert argued that the statute’s legislative history manifested an intent not to
allow waiver of a judicial forum, and that its fundamental purposes were
for partial summary judgment. ER 33. In support of its position, Tesla cited to the
Ninth Circuit’s decision in E.E.O.C. v. Luce, Forward, Hamilton & Scripps, 345
F.3d 742 (9th Cir. 2003), interpreting Section 118 of the Civil Rights Act of 1991,
which Tesla argued “encouraged” arbitration. ER 43. Mr. Lambert filed his reply
on December 4, 2017. ER 13. He argued that Section 118 does not encourage
arbitration in all cases, and that the Ninth Circuit’s decision in Luce held that
Section 118 incorporates the Gilmer analysis and requires its application to the
motion to compel arbitration, and dismissed the case. ER 11. The court cited to
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Luce, where this Circuit found Title VII claims to be arbitrable, and concluded that
Section 1981 claims are appropriate for arbitration as well. In support of this
reasoning, the court invoked Section 118’s text: “[w]here appropriate and to the
under” the statutes amended by the 1991 Act. ER 11 (quoting 105 Stat. 1071 §
for Section 1981 claims, as that statute was amended by the 1991 Act. ER 11-12.
Finally, the court recognized that there are significant differences between Title
VII and Section 1981, but stated simply “these differences do not justify departing
The district court erred in failing to give full effect to the text of Section 118
of the Civil Rights Act of 1991, which limits arbitration to claims where it is
“appropriate” and “authorized by law.” 105 Stat. 1071 § 118. Precedent from this
and other circuits compel the conclusion that Section 118 does not operate as an
Instead, Section 118 requires an application of the three-part test set forth in
Gilmer to the underlying statute. Under Gilmer, courts look to the (1) text, (2)
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The text of Section 1981 does not support arbitrability of those claims. The
Civil Rights Act of 1866 was passed at a time of universal judicial hostility to
mandatory, private arbitration, and prior to the Federal Arbitration Act. Had
judicial forum, it would have made this explicit. Rather than allow waiver, Section
Second, Section 1981’s legislative history evinces a clear intent not to allow
waiver of a judicial forum. Congress’s intent is made even clearer considering the
rights through the federal courts and general deterrence of racial discrimination,
cannot be reconciled with arbitration. Indeed, the statute could not operate at all if
STANDARD OF REVIEW
Circuit City Stores, Inc. v. Adams, 279 F.3d 889, 892 n.2 (9th Cir. 2002); Harden
v. Roadway Package Sys., Inc., 249 F.3d 1137, 1140 (9th Cir. 2001).
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ARGUMENT
The district court erred in holding that Section 1981 claims are arbitrable for
two significant reasons. First, Section 118 contains the limiting language,
“appropriate and to the extent authorized by law.” 105 Stat. 1071 § 118.
Accordingly, it does not render arbitrable all claims brought under statutes
amended by the 1991 Act; instead, it compels courts to apply the test set forth in
Second, the district court did not apply Gilmer to the underlying statute,
Section 1981, as required under Section 118. Section 1981’s text, legislative
“appropriate” and “authorized by law.” The context surrounding the drafting and
enactment of Section 1981 shows that, as it was passed before the FAA, Congress
would have provided for waiver of a judicial forum had it intended to allow it.
Section 1981 is a law unlike any other civil rights statute, enacted
federal forum from which to escape the tendency of private contract to interfere
with their ability to enforce their rights. In addition, throughout the Act’s
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arbitration. The purpose of the 1866 Act was to allow direct enforcement of civil
contract, and neither a judicial forum nor a function of the federal government.
agreement, arbitration hearings and records are not publicly available, precluding
effective coverage by the press. This stands in stark contrast to a federal judicial
Reconstruction civil rights statutes are misguided. Most notably, unlike statutes
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Court explained that “all statutory claims may not be appropriate for arbitration.”
Id. at 26. A statutory claim is inappropriate for arbitration where an intention not to
allow waiver of a judicial forum is “discoverable in the text of [the statute], its
Section 118 of the Civil Rights Act of 1991 (“1991 Act” or “Civil Rights
Act of 1991”) provides that “where appropriate and to the extent authorized by
law” arbitration of civil rights disputes is “encouraged.” 105 Stat. 1071 § 118. In
doing so, it requires courts to apply the Gilmer test to all statutes amended under
The court below erred in finding Section 1981 claims arbitrable under
Section 118 because it failed to consider the first half of the sentence. The district
court’s approach conflicts with traditional rules of statutory interpretation, this and
other circuits’ interpretation of other parts of Section 118, and this Court’s
interpretation of Section 118’s limiting language “to the extent authorized by law.”
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Section 118 encourages arbitration in the civil rights context only “where
appropriate and to the extent authorized by law.” 105 Stat. 1071 § 118. When
interpreting a statute, a court must “give significance to all of its parts.” Boise
Cascade Corp. v. E.P.A., 942 F.2d 1427, 1432 (9th Cir. 1991). It should construe
the statute so as not “to make surplusage of any provision.” Nw. Forest Res.
Council v. Glickman, 82 F.3d 825, 834 (9th Cir. 1996). Here, the District Court
relied wholly on the phrase “is encouraged,” which fails to give significance to all
of civil rights claims across the board, then “where appropriate and to the extent
language. Where, as here, “the language in question cuts back or qualifies other
language that sweeps very broadly, there's a particularly strong inference that the
legislature employed the qualifier to limit the more general language in some
principle that courts should not rely upon “a single sentence or member of a
sentence, but look to the provisions of the whole law, and to its object and policy.”
John Hancock Mut. Life Ins. Co. v. Harris Trust & Sav. Bank, 510 U.S. 86, 94-95
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(1993); see also Bailey v. United States, 516 U.S. 137, 145 (1995) (explaining that
courts should “consider not only the bare meaning of the word, but also its
This Circuit has already given effect to the limiting language of Section 118.
In Ashbey v. Archstone Property Management, Inc., 785 F.3d 1320 (9th Cir. 2015),
this Court explicitly stated that Section 118 is not “an unfettered endorsement of
permissible only ‘where appropriate.’” Id.; see also Prudential Ins. Co. of Am. v.
Dynamics Research Corp., 508 F.3d 49 (1st Cir. 2007), the First Circuit interpreted
right to a trial. It explained: “Under Title VII and the [Americans with Disabilities
scrutiny of the adequacy of the notice of waiver of judicial rights because in the
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The Skirchak court expanded on its rationale by stating that Section 118 “expressly
providing that ‘[w]here appropriate and to the extent authorized by law, the use of
C. This Circuit Has Held That Gilmer Provides The Correct Test For
Determining Whether Arbitration Is Appropriate And
Authorized By Law
Six months before Congress enacted the Civil Rights Act of 1991, the
Supreme Court issued its decision in Gilmer. The Court held that some statutory
allow waiver of a judicial forum, the claim is non-arbitrable. Courts must “assume
that Congress is aware of existing law when it passes legislation.” Miles v. Apex
This Circuit held in Luce that Section 118’s limiting language is a reference
to Gilmer’s analysis: “Gilmer was decided in May 1991 and the 1991 Act was not
enacted until November of that year. During this intervening six months, Congress
surely became aware that Gilmer, and not Alexander, provided the Supreme
F.3d at 751-52; see also Armendariz v. Found. Health Psychcare Servs., Inc., 24
Cal. 4th 83, 96 (2000) (“[A]t the time Congress passed the 1991 Act, Gilmer was
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the law. Congress must be presumed to have been aware of Gilmer when it used
“authorized by law” under the Gilmer analysis, not in all situations without
arbitration only where “appropriate” and “to the extent authorized by law.” 105
Stat. 1071 § 118. Neither the text of the statute nor its legislative history evinces a
In conducting its analysis, this Court should apply the Gilmer test to the
underlying statute, Section 1981 as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, not to
Section 118. If Section 118 incorporates the Gilmer analysis, finding that
118 itself defeats the purpose of the section by creating a self-referential loop in
The Gilmer test shows that claims under Section 1981 are not “appropriate”
1
Luce did not accomplish what the district court believes it did. In Luce this
Circuit focused on the question: does Section 118 preclude arbitration of Title VII
claims? It concluded that Section 118 does not preclude arbitration; but it did not
hold that Section 118 encourages arbitration.
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manifested an intent not to allow waiver of a judicial forum, courts look to the
statute’s (1) text; (2) legislative history; and (3) fundamental purposes. 500 U.S. at
26 (“If such an intention exists, it will be discoverable in the text of the [the
statute], its legislative history, or an ‘inherent conflict’ between arbitration and the
authorized by law for those claims. It was enacted well prior to the FAA, at a time
when arbitration was rare, and courts unanimously refused to compel parties to
participate in it. Given this context, had Congress wanted to allow out-of-court
allowing arbitration, however, the text of the 1866 Act specifically affords a
federal forum.
arbitration because the legislative history reveals that Congress had no intention of
allowing any waiver of a federal judicial forum. Finally, the fundamental purposes
legislative history or fundamental purposes of Title VII and other civil rights
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The Civil Rights Act of 1866 applies, by its own terms, to “[a]ll persons
within the jurisdiction of the United States” and has been enforced throughout its
history in the courts of the United States. Civil Rights Act of 1866, ch. 31, 14 Stat.
27 (April 9, 1866) (extending rights to “all citizens” of the United States); Civil
Rights Act of 1870, ch. 114, 16 Stat. 140 (May 31, 1870) (amending the 1866 Act
to protect “[a]ll persons within the jurisdiction of the United States”). The method
of enforcement prescribed by Congress was suit brought in the federal courts: “The
district courts of the United States shall have, exclusively of the courts of the
several States, cognizance of all crimes and offences [sic] committed against the
agreements, and such agreements were therefore rare. Congress would have made
clear its intent to depart from those prevailing norms. Courts have commonly
considered whether a statute was enacted before, or after, the Federal Arbitration
Act, and whether arbitration was commonplace at the time of enactment, when
applying Gilmer. See, e.g., Gilmer, 500 U.S. at 26-33; see also Ziober v. BLB
Resources, Inc., 839 F.3d 814, 817 (9th Cir. 2016) (taking into consideration, in
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Reemployment Rights Act, 38 U.S.C. § 4301 et seq., that the statute had been
Section 1981 was enacted long before the FAA, and at a time when
arbitration agreements were uncommon: Section 1981 became law in 1866; the
FAA was not passed until 1925. In addition, at the time Section 1981 was passed,
instead of proceeding with alternative dispute resolution did not face dismissal in
favor of arbitration. See Macneil et al., supra at 4:7; see generally Burnham, supra
at 234. 2
2
There has been only one instance in which a pre-FAA statute was found
arbitrable: the Sherman Act, 15 U.S.C. §§ 1-7, in Mitsubishi v. Soler Chrysler-
Plymouth, 473 U.S. 614 (1985). However, the Mitsubishi decision has little
applicability here, as the Supreme Court based its reasoning largely on the
Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards. The
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a statute does not alter its text or legislative history. In Jones v. Alfred Mayer Co.,
392 U.S. 409 (1968), the Supreme Court considered whether claims under Section
1982, enacted along with Section 1981 as part of the 1866 Act, applied to private,
and not just governmental, actors. In finding in the affirmative, Jones relied on the
1866 Act’s legislative history. Id. at 427-436. Jones did not alter the Act; rather, it
found that the intent had been to apply the law to private actors from the time of its
enactment. Jones could also not have “amended” the 1866 Act to allow waiver of a
judicial forum, regardless of when the case was decided: the Court was never
presented with the question of an employee could waive a judicial forum for
This Court should also look to the legislative history and fundamental
purposes of Section 1981. This is the approach endorsed, and used, by the Supreme
Court explained that arbitration awards in some Sherman Act cases were
enforceable only due to “concerns of international comity, respect for the
capacities of foreign and transnational tribunals, and sensitivity to the need of the
international commercial system for predictability in the resolution of disputes.”
Id. at 629. Mitusbishi’s policy concerns do not apply in this case.
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26-33. Gilmer held that ADEA claims were appropriate for arbitration—but only
after taking into consideration the statute’s text, legislative history, and
fundamental purposes. Id. This Circuit has followed suit in other contexts. See
Ashbey, 785 F.3d 1320 (9th Cir. 2015) (interpreting Section 118 by looking both to
The 1866 Act’s legislative history, unlike that of the ADEA, supports a
finding that arbitration is not appropriate or authorized by law for Section 1981
employees to vindicate their rights in a federal court, and rejected prior efforts to
tribunals. Given this legislative history Congress could not have intended to allow
the direct federal protection of rights, the first law of its kind. See Runyon v.
McCrary, 427 U.S. 160 (1976) (noting that the “right of individuals to bring suits
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Lessons from Federal Remedies the Framers Enacted, 42 HARV. J. ON LEGIS. 187,
204 (2005) (explaining that the Civil Rights Act of 1866 “conferred jurisdiction on
the federal courts to dispense ordinary civil and criminal justice, traditionally
Thirteenth Amendment was to protect men in their ‘civil rights and immunities’
to protect Black employees—something they would not have done if they intended
favor of the 1866 Act, rose to say, “The power is with us to provide the necessary
protective remedies .... They must be provided by the government of the United
States, whose duty it is to protect the citizen in return for the allegiance he owes to
the Government.” Cong. Globe, 39th Cong., 1st Sess. 1294 (1866). Elsewhere, he
explained:
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Id. at 1118. Important to Congress was not only a federal remedy, but a federal
judicial remedy. Likewise, Senator John Sherman remarked, “To say that a man is
a freeman and yet is not able to assert and maintain his right in a court of justice is
a negation of terms.” Cong. Globe, 39th Cong., 1st Sess. 41 (1866) (statement of
their rights “through the quiet, dignified, firm, and constitutional forms of judicial
procedure.” Cong. Globe, 39th Cong., 1st Sess. 1153 (1866) (statement of Rep.
Thayer) (emphasis added). Supporters of the Act explained that they desired a
federal forum in part because “courts do not consist of judges alone. It will be the
duty of the judges, district attorneys, marshals, clerks, grand and petit juries, and
the bailiffs of the courts, with the records to accompany each other in these
enforce civil rights without the federal court system. One of those alternatives was
the Freedmen’s Bureau tribunals, which are analogous to modern arbitration. Legal
experts in all manner of fields have described the Freedmen’s Bureau tribunals as
Artis Aiyetoro, Truth Matters: A Call for the American Bar Association to
MASON U. CIV. RTS. L.J. 51, 65 (2007) (stating that Freedmen’s Bureau tribunals
of the District of Columbia Circuit, 105 F.R.D. 251, 291 (1984) (statement of
tribunals”).
Within one year after the conclusion of the Civil War, Congress already
realized that it needed a new approach to appropriately protect the civil rights of
Black Americans in the South. Professor Terry Kogan has explained that “as a
result of abuses in the South, particularly the Blacks Codes and the early failures of
the Freedmen's Bureau, Congress saw the need for specific legislation aimed at
protecting the civil rights of the new freedmen. The result was the Civil Rights Act
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rendering the tribunals even more analogous to modern day, private arbitration.
Where scholars have explored the unfairness of the tribunals, many have attributed
the tribunals’ problems to the use of private actors. See, e.g., Henderson, supra at
1149–50 (“In jurisdictions where [local] whites were employed as Bureau agents
University Law School, drawing from the work of Jerold Auerbach, cited the
Bureau tribunals as an example where arbitration “finds and leaves the parties with
all of the chips in the hand of the stronger.” Proceedings of the Forty-Fifth Judicial
as it received regular reports from the military authorities charged with governing
the states that had been in rebellion. A common sentiment was that “more explicit
To achieve this goal, Congress advanced the Civil Rights Act of 1866.
Congress insisted that the federal government act directly upon and on behalf of
the citizens of the United States to enforce civil rights. That federal intervention
was through the courts. At the time, using the federal courts in this way was
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exceptional: the first general grant of federal question jurisdiction came nearly ten
State cognizance; and unless you can show that the States have surrendered the
control over them to the Federal Government [sic], they still belong to the States,
exclusively.” Cong. Globe, 39th Cong., 1st Sess. 479 (1866) (statement of Sen.
Saulsbury). Another called the use of the federal judiciary to enforce the Act
over a “transaction that has transpired wholly within the state.” Id. at 598-99
Congress took up the 1866 Act precisely due to concerns over the use of
their right to a federal forum would have defeated the entire bill. Reports to
Congress emphasized again and again the inequality in bargaining power between
Workforce, 116 YALE L.J. 170, 186 (2006) (“As the Reconstruction Congress was
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well aware, intolerable labor conditions prevailed throughout the South, posing
severe barriers for freed slaves who attempted to sell their labor for wages . . . .”).
employees “much worse off than when they were slaves,” and that this could only
Reconstruction, Part IV: Florida, Louisiana, Texas 125, 39th Cong., 1st Sess.
Black Americans; allowing for private persons to preside over disputes would
efface every right set forth in the bill. As one arbitration scholar has explained:
Jean Sternlight, Compelling Arbitration Claims Under the Civil Rights Act of
1866: What Congress Could Not Have Intended, 47 KAN. L. REV. 273, 282 (1999).
The accuracy of Sternlight’s analysis is borne out by history: when the Freedmen’s
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enforce Section 1981 directly through the federal courts, and in particular through
the federal judiciary; second, Section 1981 cannot achieve its goal of deterrence if
existential risk for the efficacy of deterrence. As of 2017, at least 55% of workers
in the United States are subject to arbitration agreements with their employer. E.g.,
Alexander J.S. Colvin, ECON. POL. INST., The growing use of mandatory
arbitration: Access to the courts is now barred for more than 60 million American
workers 1 (2017).
neither federal, nor a judicial forum. This cannot be reconciled with the main
reason behind the enactment of Section 1981: to afford a federal judicial forum to
employees faced with racial discrimination. The 1866 Act “guarantee[d] access to
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the judiciary as the normal means of maintaining rights,” including those rights set
the direct federal protection of rights, the first law of its kind. See Runyon v.
McCrary, 427 U.S. 160 (1976) (noting that the “right of individuals to bring suits
In other words, in passing the 1866 Act, for the first time in American
history Congress “nationalized” the civil rights of American citizens. See, e.g.,
tenBroek, supra at 178. Its goal was to “protect men in their ‘civil rights and
specifically through the federal courts. Id. In fact, “the federal government alone
nature means that it has neither the ability to enforce general injunctions backed by
the force of the federal government, nor any marshals, or clerks, or juries, or
bailiffs. See Ferguson v. Corinthian Colleges, Inc., 733 F.3d 928, 937 (9th Cir.
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2013) (endorsing the argument that an arbitrator may only issue an injunction if the
arbitration agreement allows for such relief). Unlike the federal courts, arbitrators
derive their power from—and their powers are limited by—a contract, not the
oppression in private contract. Instead, private arbitration eliminates any role for
the federal government in enforcing those statutory rights—in direct conflict with
through “the quiet, dignified, firm, and constitutional forms of judicial procedure.”
Cong. Globe, 39th Cong., 1st Sess. 1153 (1866) (statement of Rep. Thayer).
1211, 1216 (2006); see also Edward Brunet, Arrbitration and Constitutional
Rights, 71 N.C. L. REV. 81, 85 (1992) (explaining that formal law has a
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employment discrimination.” See, e.g., Carroll v. Gen. Accident Ins. Co. of Am.,
891 F.2d 1174, 1176 (5th Cir. 1990). Deterrence under Section 1981 cannot be
achieved through arbitration, for several reasons: (1) arbitration interferes with
understanding the facts and nature of previous cases; and (3) arbitration outcomes
Discrimination Law, 56 WASH. & LEE L. REV. 395, 431 (1999). This is because
“[p]otential violators can appreciate the threat of sanctions only when they learn
that similarly situated actors have been punished.” Id. This cannot happen in
arbitration.
When arbitrators issue written awards, they are not required by law to be
published, and in fact are generally not published. Laurie Kratky Doré, Public
Courts Versus Private Justice: It's Time to Let Some Sun Shine in on Alternative
Dispute Resolution, 81 CHI.-KENT L. REV. 463, 490 (2006). Every other element of
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public access to hearings and transcripts: “It is clear that the courts of this country
recognize a general right to inspect and copy public records and documents,
including judicial records and documents.” Nixon v. Warner Comms., Inc., 435
U.S. 589, 597 (1978); see also Foltz v. State Farm Mut. Auto. Ins. Co., 331 F.3d
1122, 1135 (9th Cir. 2003) (“[W]e start with a strong presumption in favor of
access to court records.”). This rule exists in part to promote “the public’s
Co. v. U.S. Dist. Court—D. Nev., 798 F.2d 1289, 1294 (9th Cir. 1986). As a result,
journalists can report on judicial proceedings and their outcomes, and potential
Because arbitrations are secret, parties are not aware of outcomes, and
OHIO ST. J. ON DISP. RESOL. 679, 682 (2004) (“These private mechanisms are often
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intended to avoid publicity, which they easily accomplish because the disputes are
never entered onto a court docket; they are unlikely ever to come to the attention of
arbitrators are not required to issue reasoned opinions or indicate whether they
have awarded punitive damages. Even when arbitrators do issue written awards,
they are often brief and barely reasoned in comparison to judicial decisions. See
repercussions of violating the law, including what facts give rise to what penalties.
Though regulated, the vast majority of rules governing arbitration are set by
the private corporations that provide arbitration services. For example, some
arbitration services require the arbitrators they hire to issue written awards;
however, there is no legal requirement that arbitrators in fact do so. The protections
in arbitral rules are subject to change at the whim of the arbitral service and, by
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both specific deterrence—i.e., preventing the same actor from repeating the same
behavior—and general deterrence. Federal courts speak with the power of the
federal government; they derive their power from that of the state. Moohr, supra at
401 (“The judicial branch definitively applies coercive state power to issue
power behind courts enhances the deterrent effect of dispute outcomes in judicial
forums. Id. at 400 (“[J]udicial decisions, which speak with the authority of the
not rely on the analysis of statutes enforced by EEOC. Section 1981’s provision of
Unlike every other civil rights claim subject to arbitration, Section 1981 was
enacted at a time when mandatory arbitration was flatly rejected by the courts. See,
e.g., Home Ins. Co. of New York v. Morse, 87 U.S. 445, 450 (1874) (stating that
forum for claims under the 1866 Act, at a time when general federal question
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jurisdiction did not exist—a significant point of contention in the debates over the
bill. It would not have taken the extraordinary step of expanding federal court
This stands in contrast to the ADEA and every other civil rights statute that
has been compelled to arbitration, which were all enacted well after the FAA and
at a time when general federal question jurisdiction had been long established and
was uncontroversial.
EEOC played in enforcing the ADEA, a role that it does not play for Section 1981.
conference, and persuasion.” 500 U.S. at 29. As a result, the Court concluded that
scheme established by Congress.” Id. The same reasoning applies to Title VII, and
all other civil rights statutes found to be appropriate for arbitration, but not to
because the EEOC itself can bring claims, and is not bound by arbitration, statutes
such as Title VII and the ADEA retain their deterrent effect regardless of whether
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and unlike arbitrators, the EEOC speaks with the voice of the state and the power
of the federal government; the enforcement role of the federal government beyond
the courts enhances deterrence of future violations, whether or not private parties
For example, Gilmer rejected the argument that arbitration interfered with
the ADEA’s goal of deterrence largely due to the ability of the EEOC to enforce
the law:
Id. at 29. Gilmer observed that the EEOC could file in court outside of the bounds
arbitration agreement. Not so here. The EEOC does not enforce Section 1981—
wronged employees cannot file a Section 1981 charge with the agency, and the
EEOC cannot bring suit under Section 1981. If this Court were to rule that Section
this statute where an arbitration agreement exists, contrary to its purposes and the
intent of Congress.
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Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Id. Parallel enforcement of a
statutory claim by an administrative agency supports a finding that the claim can
be compelled to arbitration. But the converse must be true, as well. When there is
should have the power to enforce their claims in court. See, e.g., Price v. Pelka,
690 F.2d 98, 101 (6th Cir. 1982) (noting that it is private parties who enforce
their claims, no agency can take up their cause and file on their behalf in court.
statute, and how arbitration relates to those purposes. Arbitration is not appropriate
or authorized by law for Section 1981 merely because other statutes, vastly
different from the one at issue, have purposes compatible with the arbitration of
CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, plaintiff requests this Court to reverse the
judgment of the district court and remand the case for trial, and hold that claims
under 42 U.S.C. § 1981 are not appropriate or authorized by law for arbitration.
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Appellant is not presently aware of any related cases presently before this
court.
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