Williams & Connolly secured a victory for CVS Health Corporation subsidiary Caremark LLC and related entities in an appeal before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. The Choctaw Nation sought to overturn the lower court’s decision sending a prescription drug reimbursement dispute to arbitration. Sarah Harris argued before the Ninth Circuit in October 2023. On June 10, 2024, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the district court’s order granting the CVS Health entities’ motion to compel arbitration. The Ninth Circuit held that many of the Nation’s arguments challenging arbitration were foreclosed by the court’s previous decision in Caremark v. Chickasaw Nation, 43 F.4th 1021 (9th Cir. 2022). The Ninth Circuit also rejected the Nation’s argument that the district court lacked subject-matter jurisdiction to compel arbitration, holding that the Nation waived its tribal sovereign immunity.
The Williams & Connolly team representing the CVS Health entities also included associates Kimberly Broecker and Libby Baird.
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