The Tennessee Court of Appeals recently held that a trustee's signature of brokerage account agreement containing a pre-dispute arbitration clause did not bind the trust's minor beneficiary. The Court held that an "all powers allowed by law" clause in the trust agreement did not authorize the Trustee to enter a pre-dispute arbitration agreement. Instead, another more specific clause providing the "Trustee may settle, by compromise, arbitration or otherwise any and all claims" limited the grant of that authority only to claims that have arisen. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 35-15-816(b)(14). Gladden v. Cumberland Trust & Inv. Co., No E2015-00941-COA-R9 (Tenn. App., Knoxville March 24, 2016).
Thomas K. Potter, III (tpotter@burr.com) is a partner in the Securities Litigation Practice Group at Burr & Forman, LLP. Tom is licensed in Tennessee, Texas and Louisiana. He has over 30 years' experience representing financial institutions in litigation, regulatory and compliance matters. See attorney profile. © 2016 by Thomas K. Potter, III (all rights reserved).
PartnerTom Potter is a Partner in the firm's Nashville office, and his practice focuses on securities, corporate disputes, and appellate litigation. Tom has over 35 years of experience representing business interests.
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