In Girolametti et al. v. City of Danbury et al., 2011 WL 3849137 (Docket Nos. X06-CV-10-6011711 S, X06-CV-11-6011734 S) (Superior Court Judicial District of Waterbury, August 2, 2012), the Connecticut Superior Court addressed an issue of first impression, namely whether an agreement between parties to submit to unrestricted arbitration means that the parties have reached a settlement, rendering each party a “settled party” under Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-102b(c).1 The Court found in the affirmative because agreements to arbitrate provide finality and arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution.

By way of background, the plaintiffs previously entered into a construction contract with the apportionment defendant, Rizzo Corporation. The construction contract contained a provision for unrestricted arbitration between the parties to settle any claims or disputes arising out of the construction project. When a dispute arose, arbitration proceedings before the American Arbitration Association resulted in a ruling in favor of the apportionment defendant. Thereafter, the plaintiffs commenced the instant lawsuits. The defendants to these actions then sought to apportion negligence to the apportionment defendant.

In response, the apportionment defendant argued that it is a settled or released party within the meaning of Conn. Gen. Stat. § 102b(c). It further argued that the agreement to arbitrate is a settlement of claims, and therefore the binding arbitration agreement between the plaintiffs and the apportionment defendant represents a settlement to all claims between them. Thus, the apportionment defendant contended that it may not be made an apportionment defendant per the guidelines of Conn. Gen.Stat. § 102b(c). The defendants/apportionment plaintiffs, in response, argued that an arbitration agreement is not a settlement.

In Girolametti, the Court relied heavily on Viera v. Cohen, 283 Conn. 412 (2007) in which the application of Conn. Gen. Stat. §§ 52-572h and 52-102b to settled and released parties was analyzed. The Court in Girolametti found instructive the identified examples of “similar agreements,” including offers to compromise, covenants not to sue, and stipulated judgments. Importantly, these “similar agreements” brought finality to a controversy among parties. Accordingly, the Court in Girolemetti ultimately concluded “that an arbitration agreement is a ‘similar agreement’ as defined in General Statutes § 52-572h(n). An arbitration is agreement is a settlement between the parties to resolve their disputes. It provides the parties with finality and is considered an alternative form of dispute resolution.”

The Girolemetti decision serves to further highlight the importance of arbitration agreements within contracts. Properly drafted, such agreements to arbitrate, including appraisal, can themselves provide a final resolution to disputes preventing the contracting parties from later being subject to claims of apportionment.

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1Conn. Gen. Stat. § 52-102b(c) provides:

No person who is immune from liability shall be made an apportionment defendant nor shall such person’s liability be considered for apportionment purposes pursuant to section 52-572h. If a defendant claims that the negligence of any person, who was not made a party to the action, was a proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injuries or damage and the plaintiff has previously settled or released the plaintiff’s claims against such person, then a defendant may cause such person’s liability to be apportioned by filing a notice specifically identifying such person by name and last known address and the fact that the plaintiff’s claims against such person have been settled or released. Such notice shall also set forth the factual basis of the defendant’s claim that the negligence of such person was a proximate cause of the plaintiff’s injuries or damages. No such notice shall be required if such person with whom the plaintiff settled or whom the plaintiff released was previously a party to the action.

Id. (2012).