Aral

Appellant EarthLink, Inc., appeals from an order denying its petition to compel arbitration of a putative statewide class action claim brought by respondent Ozgur Aral. The suit alleges that EarthLink charged fees to customers for digital subscriber line (DSL) service for a period prior to providing customers with the equipment necessary to utilize the service. The complaint was brought under the unfair competition law (UCL) (Bus. & Prof. Code, § 17200 et seq.), and seeks both injunctive and restitutionary relief on behalf of California residents who were affected by this practice. The trial court denied the petition on the ground that the gravamen of the complaint was injunctive relief, which cannot be obtained through arbitration.

We disagree with the trial court’s ground for denying the petition. The claim for injunctive relief could have been severed from the claim for restitution, and the latter sent to arbitration. We nevertheless affirm. The arbitration provision in the DSL service agreement put forth as the parties’ final agreement by EarthLink requires California consumers with minor monetary claims to arbitrate in Georgia and forbids class actions. Under recent…