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Under Washington law, a motion to vacate an arbitration award is time-barred if not filed within three months of receiving notice of the award, according to the Washington Court of Appeals.
In MBNA America Bank, N.A. v. Miles, No. 24867-4-III, 2007 WL 1711803, (Wash. Ct. App. June 14, 2007), Miles appealed the denial of a motion to vacate an arbitration award, the denial of a motion for a new trial, and the confirmation of an award entered in favor of MBNA. Miles alleged that the award to MBNA for credit card charges was procured by corruption, fraud or undo means, and that a valid arbitration agreement never existed. MBNA asserted that any challenge to the arbitration award was barred under a statute of limitations.
The Court agreed with MBNA, finding that Washington law required "any action contesting an arbitration award must be brought within the three month period" following notice of the award, and noting that Miles did not file the motion to vacate until "over a year later."
Miles also argued for the first time on appeal that MBNA did not comply with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act or the Fair Credit Billing Act in submitting the dispute to arbitration. The Court declined to consider the issue, finding that "[w]hether the… Act[s] are presumably followed does not fall under the exceptions" to the rule that the Court "do[es] not consider issues for the first time on appeal."
Finally, the Court awarded attorney fees to MBNA, enforcing the credit card agreement provision that stated "if MBNA refers the account to an attorney who is not a salaried employee," it is "entitled to attorney fees on appeal."
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