Ninth Circuit Judge Cites Professor Horton in Mandatory Arbitration Case

Professor David Horton was cited in a U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit panel’s 2-1 decision, in Chamber of Commerce v. Bonta, that effectively revived California’s ban on mandatory arbitration agreements under AB 51.

Judge Carlos F. Lucero’s opinion cited Horton’s 2013 Georgetown Law Journal article “Federal Arbitration Act Preemption, Purposivism, and State Public Policy.”

The panel reversed, in part, the conclusion of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California that AB 51 is pre-empted by the Federal Arbitration Act; affirmed the district court’s determination that the civil and criminal penalties associated with AB 51 were preempted; vacated the district court’s preliminary injunction enjoining AB 51’s enforcement; and remanded for further proceedings.

Professor Horton joined the King Hall faculty in 2012.  His primary research and teaching interests are wills and trusts, contracts, and arbitration law.  In 2015, his article "In Partial Defense of Probate: Evidence from Alameda County, California" was selected as the winner of the 29th annual Association of American Law Schools (AALS) Scholarly Paper Competition and he was honored with UC Davis School of Law’s Distinguished Teaching Award.