In a matter of first impression, a federal appeals court has held that a court, not an arbitrator, should decide whether to arbitrate a class action—but then sent the case before it to an arbitrator because of the contract’s language.

In a 2-1 ruling Wednesday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit cited recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions distinguishing class actions from individual cases in the context of arbitration agreements, primarily Stolt-Nielsen S.A. v. AnimalFeeds International in 2010 and AT&T Mobility v. Concepcion in 2011. The Eleventh Circuit concluded that a court, not an arbitrator, was the appropriate authority to decide whether a contract allowed for the arbitration of class claims, which are fundamentally different from individual cases.

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