Zetor North America, Inc. v. Ridgeway Enterprises, No. 16-2125 (8th Cir. 2017)
Annotate this CaseAfter Zetor filed suit against Ridgeway for trademark infringement, Ridgeway sought to enforce an arbitration clause in a prior settlement agreement between the parties. The Eighth Circuit affirmed the district court's motion denying Ridgeway's motion to compel arbitration, holding that Zetor's claims have no relation to the terms of the settlement agreement; Zetor's claims rest on independent trademark and copyright grounds, which have no relation to the terms of the agreement and in no way depend on its existence; and the plain language of the contract did not apply to wholly independent claims arising several years later.
Court Description: Benton, Author, with Smith, Chief Judge, and Shepherd, Circuit Judge] Civil case - Arbitration. Plaintiff's claims in this matter had no relation to a settlement agreement the parties signed in a 2008 dispute which included an arbitration provision defendant now seeks to enforce; plaintiff does not allege defendant violated the terms of that agreement, and while the objected-to conduct is similar to that which led to the 2008 settlement agreement, plaintiff's claims rest on independent trademark and copyright grounds which have no relation to the terms of the earlier agreement and in no way depend on its existence; the district court did not err in denying defendant's motion to compel arbitration.
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