Contracts: Prescription Drug Benefit Plan-Arbitration Agreement -Class Action

Defendants appealed from the district court’s grant of summary judgment to plaintiff in the parties’ dispute involving their prescription drug benefit plan agreements, with plaintiff having filed suit to block defendants’ demand for class arbitration. The district court ruled that there was no contractual basis in the parties’ agreements for class arbitration.

Where the parties’ arbitration agreement was silent on the issue of class arbitration, the court could not infer an agreement to engage in class arbitration but instead had to infer that silence meant prohibition of class arbitration.

Judgment is affirmed.

Catamaran Corporation v. Towncrest Pharmacy (MLW No. 74397/Case No. 17-3501 – 6 pages) (U.S. Court of Appeals, 8th Circuit, Shepherd, J.) Appealed from U.S. District Court, Southern District of Iowa, Rose, J. (Bruce Henry Stoltze Sr., of Des Moines, IA for appellant) (Jason Michael Casini, of Des Moines, IA for appellee; Jaki K. Samuelson of Des Moines, IA on brief)