COA Upholds Arbitration Clause Dealing With Dissolution of Partnership

In In re Jarvis & Sons, members of a general partnership appealed the trial court's ruling denying parts of their motion to compel arbitration in a dispute over dissolution of the partnership. The trial court found that the paragraph of the arbitration agreement saying that the withdrawing partner "shall have the right to force compulsory dissolution by court order" exempted the means of dissolution from arbitration, and decided that the partnership should be dissolved by sale. The COA concluded that the entire matter should be sent to arbitration, and reversed the trial court. Even though the arbitration clause contemplated enforcement by court order, the COA held that the clause's general language requiring arbitration of "all disputes which arise under this agreement" trumped that provision.