Kaiser Found. Hospitals, Inc. v. SUPERIOR COURT OF LOS ANGELES CTY.

Petitioners, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, Inc., Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., and Southern California Permanente Medical Group (Kaiser), seek a writ of mandate directing the superior court to set aside its order of January 20, 1993, granting real parties’ motion to vacate an arbitration award.

Real parties’ wrongful death action against Kaiser was submitted to binding arbitration pursuant to the provisions of Kaiser’s medical and hospital service agreement with the decedent. That agreement required that each party select one arbitrator, and that these two would then choose a neutral arbitrator. Kaiser’s appointed arbitrator suggested, and the Cobums agreed, that retired Judge Ralph Drummond be appointed as the neutral arbitrator. Drummond did not communicate to real parties his past relations with Kaiser. The subsequently held proceedings resulted in an award in favor of Kaiser.

Thereafter, upon the filing of Neaman v. Kaiser Foundation Hospital (1992) 9 Cal.App.4th 1170 [ 11 Cal.Rptr.2d 879 ], real parties discovered that, in tmth, Drummond had served as Kaiser’s party arbitrator on a number of prior occasions. Therefore, they moved the trial court to vacate the…