What is required to be affixed to a subcontract in order for the dispute resolution processes to be enforceable in the state of South Carolina?
1 reply
Sep 10, 2019
When there's any agreement to send a dispute through a specific dispute resolution process - like arbitration or mediation - South Carolina strongly favors sending the dispute to the agreed-upon dispute resolution process. So, as long as a contract clearly sets out that disputes should go through a specific process, as long as both parties have agreed to the contract (and that all requirements have a contract have been met), and as long as the dispute resolution agreement isn't clearly unfair, then that agreement should generally be upheld.
Note, though, that if the agreement to send the dispute to arbitration is one-sided, it could get struck down. That's exactly what happened in a relatively recent case regarding an arbitration agreement for a residential constuction project. You can read about that here: "South Carolina Supreme Court Decision Impacts Enforceability of Arbitration Provisions in New Residential Construction Sales Agreement" by Womble, Bond, Dickinson.
If you're interested in an arbitration agreement, specifically, this article does a great job of breaking down what goes into consideration when evaluating whether an arbitration agreement is enforceable: "Arbitration: Again Favored as a Means of Dispute Resolution" by Nexsen Pruet.