Case Explained: WILLIAMS, ET AL. V. SHAC, LLC, ET AL.

Court: United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Filed: 2026-08-13 Docket: 2:21-cv-01676-APG-MDC The Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s order denying the defendants’ motion to compel arbitration. The court applied a de novo standard of review to determine whether the defendants had waived their right to arbitrate. Under the applicable legal test, waiver requires two elements: knowledge of an existing right to compel arbitration and intentional acts inconsistent with that right. The court found that the defendants satisfied both elements because they were aware of their arbitration agreements as a condition of employment yet actively sought merits determinations by answering the complaint and filing a motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim without asserting their right to arbitrate. The court rejected the defendants’ argument that they could not move to compel arbitration due to the plaintiff’s anonymity, noting that seeking judgment on the merits evinced partiality for judicial resolution. Consequently, the defendants are deemed to have waived their right to arbitration, and the case proceeds in district court. Do It For The Case Law is a news reporting service. Nothing in this episode constitutes legal advice.