Cobler

Stanley, Barber, Southard, Brown & Associates (Stanley Barber), a professional career consulting agency, appeals a judgment confirming an arbitration award in favor of Ed Cobler, its former client. The judgment also awarded costs payable by Stanley Barber to the American Arbitration Association (the AAA). Stanley Barber contends the judgment should be reversed because of apparent bias on the part of the arbitrator, because the award exceeds the jurisdiction conferred on the arbitrator by the agreement of the parties, and because there was no basis for an award of costs to the AAA. We find only orle of these contentions, excess of jurisdiction, to be meritorious to some extent. We thus affirm in part and reverse in part with directions, as will be explained infra.

Factual and Procedural Background

Under well-accepted principles concerning judicial confirmation or rejection of arbitration awards, neither this court nor the trial court may review the merits of the dispute that was submitted to arbitration. (Johnston v. Security Ins. Co. (1970) 6 Cal.App.3d 839, 842 [ 86 Cal.Rptr. 133 ].) Nor does either court consider the sufficiency of the evidence to support the award.…