Renee Tillman v. Rheingold Valet Rheingold Etc

OPINION

BERZON, Circuit Judge:

When two parties have entered into a valid arbitration agreement, the Federal Arbitration Act requires federal courts to stay lawsuits between them until the arbitration is resolved and then to enforce any arbitration award. Our question is how a federal court is to proceed where one party runs out of funds to pay for its share of the arbitration and the arbitrator thereupon terminates the arbitration proceedings without entering an award or judgment or otherwise resolving the case.

Here, Renee Tillman sued her law firm, Rheingold, Valet, Rheingold, Shkolnik &…