The United States Supreme Court has rejected the Samsung warranty dispute appeal. The company was trying to force customers who filed proposed class-action lawsuits against it to arbitrate their claims instead of initiating legal proceedings in court. The highest court in the land has maintained a lower court's ruling and rejected Samsung's appeal.
Samsung warranty dispute appeal
It's not uncommon for consumer electronics companies to insert arbitration clauses in warranties. However, regulatory agencies and courts have been scrutinizing these agreements that essentially limit options for dispute resolution.
The Samsung warranty dispute appeal stems from proposed class-action lawsuits filed by two California residents in 2014. The devices in question were the Galaxy S4 and Galaxy S3. They had concerns about the performance and resale value of these handsets.
Both customers claim that they didn't see the arbitration provisions because they were buried deep inside the warranty booklet and not mentioned on the box. The provision states that disputes between customers and Samsung must be resolved through arbitration and specifically rules out class-action lawsuits.
Samsung had appealed a lower court's decision after it failed to consider the company's bid to force customers to arbitrate instead of litigating. The United States Supreme Court has left the lower court's ruling intact.
The justices ruled that customers of certain Galaxy smartphones were not bound by a warranty provision that compelled customers for arbitration instead of litigation.
Samsung initially tried to force the customers to arbitrate their claims but it was shot down by a unanimous three-judge panel of the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco. The court ruled that Samsung did not provide customers with proper notice of the arbitration provision and that neither customer had consented to be bound by that provision.
The company appealed the decision to the Supreme Court but it has left the lower court's ruling intact.
