Sammy Thomas and Pam Thomas v. Sloan Homes, LLC

Summary

The Alabama Supreme Court affirmed the trial court’s order compelling arbitration, holding that the doctrine of merger does not extinguish the arbitration clause in the residential sales contract because the clause is a collateral provision that survives the deed. The Court reasoned that merger only eliminates prior agreements that relate solely to the conveyance of title, not obligations such as arbitration or construction duties. The decision was rendered after a de novo review of the motion to compel arbitration.