Drinane v. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance

At issue in the case before us is whether an arbitration award should be set aside where the arbitrator, an attorney with a private practice of his own, had a case pending against an individual whose insurer, subject to liability on the pending lawsuit, was a party to the arbitration, and the arbitrator failed to inform the parties of that relationship.

Thomas Drinane, Edward Drinane, and Geraldine Drinane, plaintiffs, brought suit in the circuit court of Cook County against State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company (State Farm) seeking to have an arbitration award set aside. The…