Wolf v. Baltimore

378 A.2d 911, 250 Pa. Super. 230, 1977 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2590
CourtSuperior Court of Pennsylvania
DecidedOctober 6, 1977
Docket2112
StatusPublished
Cited by25 cases

This text of 378 A.2d 911 (Wolf v. Baltimore) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Superior Court of Pennsylvania primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Wolf v. Baltimore, 378 A.2d 911, 250 Pa. Super. 230, 1977 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2590 (Pa. Ct. App. 1977).

Opinions

CERCONE, Judge:

This is an appeal from, an order of the Court of Common Pleas of Luzerne County, sitting in equity, which granted a preliminary injunction enjoining the arbitration of a dispute between the parties.1

Appellant, Martin Baltimore", and appellee, Leonard Wolf, have been partners in a general insurance agency since 1956. In 1968, the parties entered into a written partnership agreement, which provided that the partnership was to continue for an indefinite time until “terminated as herein provided, or as may be mutually agreed upon.” The agreement included a broad common law arbitration clause providing for arbitration of disputes between the parties by the [233]*233American Arbitration Association. On September 5, 1975, Baltimore filed a demand for arbitration with the American Arbitration Association seeking dissolution of the partnership and equal distribution of the assets of the partnership. The basis on which this relief was sought was an allegation that the relationship between the partners had so far deteriorated it was adversely affecting the business. At the first arbitration hearing on June 15, 1976, Wolf objected to the jurisdiction of the arbitrators arguing this dispute was not arbitrable under the agreement. Although the arbitrators decided the dispute was arbitrable, they nevertheless granted Wolf a continuance to allow the court of common pleas to determine the arbitrability of the dispute. On June 18, 1976 Wolf filed a complaint in equity requesting preliminary injunctive relief. After the submission of briefs and oral argument, the court below granted a preliminary injunction on June 22, 1976, and Baltimore appealed that decision.

To receive the benefit of a preliminary injunction the plaintiff must demonstrate prima facie that his right to relief is clear, his need for relief is immediate, and his remedy at law, if any, is inadequate. Safeguard Mut. Ins. Co. v. Williams, 463 Pa. 567, 345 A.2d 664 (1975); Roberts v. School Dist. of Scranton, 462 Pa. 464, 341 A.2d 475 (1975). The scope of our review of preliminary injunctions on appeal is limited to whether there were any apparently reasonable grounds for the action of the court below. Milk Marketing Bd. of Commonwealth v. United Dairy Farm Coop. Ass’n, 450 Pa. 497, 299 A.2d 191 (1973). Only if no grounds exist to support the decree, so that the court’s ruling was palpably erroneous or a misapplication of the law, will an appellate court disturb the decision of a court of equity. Roberts v. School District of Scranton, supra; Credit Alliance Corp. v. Philadelphia Minit-man Car Wash Corp., 450 Pa. 367, 301 A.2d 816 (1973). Despite our applying these principles of limited review in the instant case, we conclude that the order of the court below granting the preliminary injunction must be reversed.

As mentioned above, the first prerequisite Mr. Wolf must demonstrate is a clear right to enjoin the arbitra[234]*234tion and have the court determine the partnership dispute. Since arbitration is a matter of contract, absent an agreement between the parties to arbitrate, the parties cannot be compelled to arbitrate any issue. Lincoln Sys. of Educ. v. Lincoln Ass’n of Univ. Professors, 467 Pa. 112, 354 A.2d 576 (1976); Schollhammer’s Hatboro Manor, Inc. v. Local Jt. Exec. Bd. of Philadelphia, 426 Pa. 53, 231 A.2d 160 (1967). Where, as here, the parties agree they are bound by a valid agreement to arbitrate, when one party seeks to enjoin the other from proceeding to arbitration, judicial inquiry is limited to the question of whether the dispute involved falls within the arbitration clause. Independence Development, Inc. v. American Arbitration Ass’n, 460 Pa. 390, 333 A.2d 781 (1975). Thus, á party may be entitled to an injunction if he can establish that, although he did agree to arbitrate, the agreement to arbitrate was limited and did not embrace the dispute in issue. Flightways Corp. v. Keystone Helicopter Corp., 459 Pa. 660, 331 A.2d 184 (1975). But, to be consistent with the general policy favoring the arbitration of contractual differences, an order enjoining arbitration of a particular grievance should not be granted unless it can be said with positive assurance that the agreement involved is not susceptible of an interpretation that covers the asserted dispute. Lincoln Sys. of Educ. v. Lincoln Ass’n of Univ. Professors, 467 Pa. 112, 354 A.2d 576 (1976). We find that under any reasonable interpretation of the instant agreement it cannot be said with positive assurance that the present dispute does not fall within the arbitration clause.

The arbitration clause in the partnership agreement provides that:

“Any controversy or claim arising out of or relating to this agreement or the breach thereof, shall be settled by arbitration in accordance with the rules then obtaining of the American Arbitration Association . . . .”

This is a broad arbitration clause; indeed, broader language would be hard to conceive. Flightways Corp. v. Keystone Helicopter Corp., supra. Disputes concerning the dissolution of the partnership are not specifically excluded; [235]*235in fact, one of the main purposes of the partnership agreement is to determine in several different situations when dissolution occurs and how the assets are to be distributed. Therefore, a dispute between the partners questioning the legality of one partner dissolving the partnership relates to the agreement or the breach thereof. With the inclusion of the arbitration clause, the parties have provided that a dispute as to the construction of the agreement shall be arbitrated. Whether one partner can dissolve without a breach of the agreement requires the construction of the agreement. A claim by one partner that the conduct of the other had adversely affected the business relates to the agreement insofar as it may be a breach of the agreement. Therefore, a clear right to injunctive relief cannot be shown since the breadth of the arbitration clause precludes a reasonable interpretation that excludes the instant dispute.

Furthermore, Wolf did not show immediate and irreparable injury would occur for which there is no adequate remedy at law if an injunction did not issue. Even if the court could enjoin arbitration of the dissolution of the partnership, the court could not enjoin the dissolution2 by one partner. Under the Uniform Partnership Act, 59 P.S. § 93:

“Dissolution is caused:

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Adena Inc. v. Cohn
55 Pa. D. & C.4th 200 (Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas, 2001)
Beck v. Krell
47 Pa. D. & C.4th 163 (Wayne County Court of Common Pleas, 2000)
Butler v. Provident Mutual Life Insurance
43 Pa. D. & C.4th 565 (Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas, 1999)
Shadduck v. Christopher J. Kaclik, Inc.
713 A.2d 635 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1998)
Crutcher v. Smith (In Re Crutcher)
209 B.R. 347 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 1997)
Messa v. State Farm Insurance
641 A.2d 1167 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1994)
Kivlin v. Allstate Insurance
5 Pa. D. & C.4th 468 (Lackawanna County Court of Common Pleas, 1989)
Custer v. Somerset Manor Associates
4 Pa. D. & C.4th 225 (Somerset County Court of Common Pleas, 1989)
Emlenton Area Municipal Authority v. Miles
548 A.2d 623 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1988)
Metropolitan Property & Liability Insurance v. Malinowski
695 F. Supp. 175 (E.D. Pennsylvania, 1988)
Sanitary Sewer Authority v. Dial Associates Construction Group, Inc.
532 A.2d 862 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1987)
Rocca v. Pennsylvania General Insurance
516 A.2d 772 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)
Crozer Chester Medical Center v. May
506 A.2d 1377 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)
Hade v. Nationwide Insurance
503 A.2d 980 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1986)
Matt Lamb & Sons, Inc. v. Christian Schmidt Brewing Co.
485 A.2d 836 (Supreme Court of Pennsylvania, 1984)
White v. Concord Mutual Insurance
442 A.2d 713 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1982)
Hart v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance
431 A.2d 283 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1981)
Remic v. Berlin
426 A.2d 153 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1981)
Rizzo v. New Jersey Manufacturers Insurance
18 Pa. D. & C.3d 144 (Bucks County Court of Common Pleas, 1981)
Rupel v. Bluestein
421 A.2d 406 (Superior Court of Pennsylvania, 1980)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
378 A.2d 911, 250 Pa. Super. 230, 1977 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2590, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/wolf-v-baltimore-pasuperct-1977.