Summary
holding that nonsignatory to contract was “bound by her agreement to arbitrate, as having accepted the economic and professional benefits of [signatory's] membership with the board”
Summary of this case from Mendez v. Hampton Court Nursing Center, LLCOpinion
No. 4D00-3354.
Opinion filed March 7, 2001.
Appeal of a non-final order from the Circuit Court for the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit, Palm Beach County; Edward H. Fine, Judge; L.T. Case No. 00-5714 AI.
Affirmed.
Freeman W. Barner, Jr. of Watterson, Hyland Klett, P.A., Palm Beach Gardens, for appellant.
Susan B. Yoffee of Fleming, Haile Shaw, P.A., North Palm Beach,, for Appellees-Paulette Koch Real Estate Inc. and Paulette Koch.
Martha Gottfried, Inc. (Gottfried) appeals a non-final order compelling arbitration in its dispute with Paulette Koch Real Estate, Inc. over a real estate commission. We affirm.
Gottfried contends that it has not agreed to arbitrate this dispute and should not be bound by the agreement of its broker, Pamela Hoffpauer, to submit the claim to arbitration by virtue of her application for membership with the Palm Beach Board of Realtors.
Arbitration is a preferred method of dispute resolution; therefore, any doubt regarding the scope of an arbitration clause should be resolved in favor of arbitration. See Roe v. Amica Mutual Ins. Co., 533 So.2d 279 (Fla. 1988); Nestler-Poletto Realty, Inc. v. Kassin, 730 So.2d 324, 326 (Fla. 4th DCA 1999); Ronbeck Constr. Co. v. Savanna Club Corp., 592 So.2d 344 (Fla. 4th DCA 1992).
Non-signatories may be bound by an arbitration agreement if dictated by ordinary principles of contract law and agency. See, e.g., Thomson-CSF, S.A. v. American Arbitration Ass'n, 64 F.3d 773, 776 (2d Cir. 1995). Furthermore, a third party beneficiary to a contract can be compelled to arbitrate. See Terminix Int'l Co. LP v. Ponzio, 693 So.2d 104 (Fla. 5th DCA 1997) (citing Raffa Assocs., Inc. v. Boca Raton Resort Club, 616 So.2d 1096 (Fla. 4th DCA 1993)); Zac Smith Co., Inc. v. Moonspinner Condo. Ass'n, 472 So.2d 1324 (Fla. 1st DCA 1985). Therefore, Gottfried, while not a signatory to Hoffpauer's application for membership with the Palm Beach Board of Realtors, is, nevertheless, bound by her agreement to arbitrate, as having accepted the economic and professional benefits of Hoffpauer's membership with the board. See, e.g., Proodian v. Plymouth Citrus Growers, Ass'n, 13 So.2d 15 (Fla. 1943); C. Q. Farms, Inc. v. Cargill, Inc., 363 So.2d 379 (Fla. 1st DCA 1978).
Accordingly, we affirm as to this and as to all other issues raised in this appeal.
STONE, POLEN, and GROSS, JJ., Concur.