Abbey

I. BACKGROUND

In August 2008, Abbey filed a lawsuit in San Francisco Superior Court (the merits lawsuit) against Fortune and others (together, defendants) in connection with his involuntary termination from involvement in the business activities of Fortune. Because of an upheaval in the law practice of Abbey‘s attorney, he did not immediately serve the complaint. In October 2008, the attorney finally notified counsel for defendants of the filing of the merits lawsuit, but he told counsel the complaint would not be served until his professional situation improved. Rather than await service of the merits lawsuit, Fortune promptly served a demand for arbitration of the dispute and commenced proceedings with the American Arbitration Association (AAA). Fortune‘s claim of a right to arbitrate was based on an amendment to Fortune‘s operating agreement (the Third Amendment), which provided that all disputes regarding Abbey‘s termination from Fortune would be resolved by AAA arbitration. The same provision contained an attorney fees clause stating: ―The arbitrator may also assess reasonable attorneys‘ fees and expenses and the fees and expenses of appraisers or other experts, in amounts…