Garcia v. Federal Insurance

I dissent and would affirm the order of the Appellate Division.

Were this a consensual arbitration the review of which is governed by CPLR article 75, I would agree that the arbitrator’s determination was not so irrational as to require its vacatur. However, inasmuch as submission of this dispute to arbitration was not consensual but compulsory (Insurance Law, § 675, subd 2; Matter of Walters [Government Employees Ins. Co.], 57 AD2d 843), due process demands application of a more critical standard of review. (Mount St. Mary’s Hosp. v Catherwood, 26 NY2d 493, 508.) Unlike a determination made…