Blanton v. Domino's Pizza Franchising LLC

Docket: 19-2388

Opinion Date: June 17, 2020

Judge: Thapar

Areas of Law: Arbitration & Mediation

Each Domino’s pizza franchise is an independently owned and managed business with a separate legal identity. Domino’s allegedly required its franchisees to agree not to solicit or hire employees from other franchises without the prior consent of their employer. Piersing began working at a Domino’s franchise in 2014. Four years later, Piersing sought a second job from a different Domino’s franchise. When he was hired by the second franchise, Piersing signed an arbitration agreement, which requires him to resolve employment-related issues by arbitration conducted according to the American Arbitration Association National Rules for the Resolution of Employment Disputes. Piersing was fired from the first franchise, which apparently thought that its franchise agreement required it to fire him in order to allow him to work at the second franchise. Months later, Piersing left the second franchise because of medical issues. Piersing filed a class action against Domino’s, alleging that the franchise agreement violated federal antitrust law and state law. Domino’s moved to compel arbitration under the Federal Arbitration Act, 9 U.S.C. 1. The plaintiffs argued that Domino’s could not enforce the arbitration agreements because only their franchises had signed the agreements. The Sixth Circuit affirmed that the question of who should resolve the dispute, an arbitrator or a court, should itself be resolved by an arbitrator.