Nicholas Piazza, et al. v. Gramercy Distressed Opportunity Fund II L.P., et al.

Under 9 U.S.C. § 16(a), a litigant has an immediate right to appeal any order “refusing a stay” pending arbitration or “denying a petition” seeking to compel arbitration. Here, the defendants filed a motion asking the district court, among other things, to stay the litigation and order the parties to arbitrate. The court denied the motion, and the defendants appealed. The Tenth Circuit, however, dismissed the appeal on jurisdictional grounds, reasoning that because the motion was not captioned as a “motion to compel arbitration” and made arguments in the alternative, it fell outside of § 16’s scope. In doing so, the appellate court further deepened an entrenched circuit split. The question presented is: Whether, under 9 U.S.C. § 16, a circuit court has appellate jurisdiction over an interlocutory order denying a motion for a stay pending arbitration or for an order compelling arbitration.