Takeaway: Courts can reject arbitration agreements based on equitable principles. Nonetheless, they must carefully consider state contract law to determine how and if such principles apply. An arbitration agreement is not automatically invalid because the employee is subject to a conservatorship.
A former employee who had severe autism and was denied the opportunity to have her job coach review an agreement that included an arbitration clause challenged the validity of the clause in a case before the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.
The plaintiff's autism made it difficult for her to recognize social cues, resist influence from others, keep a job and manage her personal affairs. In 2016, a South Dakota court appointed her mother as her guardian and conservator.
The plaintiff attended a job fair with a state-sponsored job coach and applied for a job at a Menards home improvement store, owned by Menard Inc., in Watertown, S.D. The coach explained her role and asked Menard employees to let her help the plaintiff with her application and interview. They refused, so the plaintiff filled out the application and did the interview by herself, and the company hired her as a cashier. The plaintiff's coach asked to help during the store's job orientation. The store refused, and the plaintiff went alone.
At the orientation, she signed an employment agreement that included an arbitration clause. She had no opportunity to have her job coach or her mother review the agreement. Menard...
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