Fifteenth Court Holds Arbitration Delegation Clauses Trump Trial Court Scope Determinations in Multi-Contract Disputes

In consolidated interlocatory appeals from two Business Court divisions, the Fifteenth Court of Appeals held that when parties adopt AAA arbitration rules, trial courts lack authority to determine which claims or related contracts fall within the arbitration's scope—that gateway question is delegated exclusively to the arbitrator. The decision reversed both a trial court's refusal to compel arbitration of a dispute over pledged membership units and another division's order staying an ongoing arbitration, establishing that delegation clauses strip courts of jurisdiction over arbitrability determinations.