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Communicats. Intn'l Union, 727 A.2d 890, 891 (D.C. Ct. App. | | 1999); Guider v. McIntosh, 293 Ill.App. 3d 935, 689 N.E.2d 231, 233, 228 | | Ill.Dec. 359 (1997); FCR Greensboro, Inc. v. C & M Investments | | of High Point, Inc., 119 N.C.App. 575, 459 S.E.2d 292, 295, | | cert. denied, 341 N.C. 648, 462 S.E.2d 510 (1995); Rademaker v. | | Atlas Assur Co., 98 Ohio App. 15, 120 N.E.2d 592, 596 (1954). | | Section 25(a) and (c) includes a provision to enter judgment or | | award attorney's fees when there is an order "vacating without | | directing a rehearing." The terms "without directing a | | rehearing" were added because an order of vacatur is a final one | | and subject to appeal under Section 28(a)(5) if the court does | | not order a rehearing under Section 23(c). |
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| | | 2. Some of the language in UAA Section 15 on judgment rolls | | and docketing has been rewritten and incorporated into Section | | 25(a) that the judgment may be "recorded, docketed, and | | enforced as any other judgment in a civil action" both to | | delete what in some States would be considered archaic | | procedure under UAA Section 15 and to allow States more | | flexibility in recording judgments according to the procedures | | in their States. |
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| | | 3. Section 25(c) promotes the statutory policy of finality | | of arbitration awards by adding a provision for recovery of | | reasonable attorney's fees and reasonable expenses of | | litigation to prevailing parties in contested judicial actions | | to confirm, vacate, modify or correct an award. Potential | | liability for the opposing parties' post-award litigation | | expenditures will tend to discourage all but the most | | meritorious challenges of arbitration awards. If a party | | prevails in a contested judicial proceeding over an | | arbitration award, Section 25(c) allows the court discretion | | to award attorney's fees and litigation expenses. Blitz v. | | Bath Isaac Adas Israel Congregation, 352 Md. 31, 720 A.2d 912 | | (1998) (permitting award of attorney's fees in both the trial | | and appeal of an action to confirm and enforce an arbitration | | award against party who refused to comply with it). |
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| | | 4. The right to recover post-award litigation expenses does | | not apply if a party's resistance to the award is entirely | | passive but only where there is "a contested judicial | | proceeding." The situation of an uncontested judicial | | proceeding, e.g., to confirm an arbitration award, will most | | often occur when a party simply cannot pay an amount awarded. | | If a party lacks the ability to comply with the award and does | | not resist a motion to confirm the award, the subsection does | | not impose further liability for the prevailing party's fees | | and expenses. These expenditures should be nominal in a | | situation in which a motion to confirm is made but not | | opposed. This is consistent with the general policy of most | | States, which does not allow a | | prevailing party to recover legal fees and most expenses | | associated with executing a judgment. |
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