Supreme Court Won’t Revive Delaware’s State-Run Arbitration Program

Delaware’s attempt to offer state-run confidential arbitration came to an end this week, when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to review and possibly revive the program. Delaware, the leading state for incorporation by public companies, established the state-run and judge-staffed arbitration system in 2009. The Delaware Coalition for Open Government sued, claiming that the process was essentially a state proceedings that re left shareholders and others in the dark and was were unconstitutional. The Third U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals agreed, ruling that the First Amendment required proceedings to be open to the public.