Facing a battery of complaints emerging from allegedly defective DPS6 transmissions in Fiesta and Focus vehicles, the Ford Motor Company filed a memorandum of points and authorities in support of its motion to compel arbitration in Wirth v Ford.
Ford points to the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) and argues that plaintiffs Darice and Edward Wirth signed a California Vehicle Motor Lease Agreement to lease their 2014 Fiesta, which included a broad arbitration provision permitting disputes to be resolved outside of court.
“While Ford is not a signatory, California law and the weight of equitable doctrines permit Ford to compel the Wirths to arbitrate their claims against it,” wrote Ford’s attorney Andrew Chang in the pleading filed last month.
The defendant further argues that the Wirths have named the car dealer as Ford’s agent.
“As a matter of equity and fairness, California law permits Ford to compel arbitration based on those allegations,” Chang stated. “So any dispute as to whether the arbitration agreement applies to the claims here has been delegated to, and should be decided by, the arbitrator.”
However, the plaintiffs claim in their complaint that Ford fraudulently induced them to enter into the California Vehicle Motor Lease Agreement.
"Plaintiffs were harmed by purchasing a vehicle that they would not have purchased had they known the true facts about the transmission and the transmission defects affecting it," wrote the Wirth's attorney Steve Mikhov with the Knight Law Group law firm.
The motion to compel the Wirths to arbitration is set to be argued before District Judge Birotte on May 13 after being postponed due to COVID-19.
“In light of the Court's implementation of its COOP (Continuity of Operations Plan) in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Court hereby continues the hearing on Defendant's Motions to Compel Arbitraton,” wrote Judge Birotte in a chamber’s order on March 23.
Birotte presides over the consolidated multi-district litigation arising from DPS6 transmissions at the Central District of California.
As previously reported, in the last six years, more than 30,000 complaints have been filed against the auto industry in California courts. At 8,791 lawsuits, Ford is the auto manufacturer that has faced the most lemon lawsuits compared to just 5,612 for General Motors.