Southern Pioneer Life Insurance Co. v. Danny Thomas and Irma Thomas

Summary

The court affirmed the denial of Southern Pioneer’s motion to compel arbitration in a dispute over unearned credit-life insurance premiums. It held that the state insurance-arbitration exemption regulates insurance and is reverse-preemptive under the McCarran-Ferguson Act, so the Federal Arbitration Act could not require enforcement of the arbitration clause. The court also rejected Southern Pioneer’s attempt to compel arbitration through equitable estoppel. Justice Henry, concurring, agreed with the result but would have based it more directly on the plain language of the Arkansas statute.