Stewart v. Midwestern Indem. Co

In Stewart v. Midwestern Indem. Co. (1989), 45 Ohio St.3d 124, 543 N.E.2d 1200, the Ohio Supreme Court held that "a trial court order which vacates an arbitration award and orders the parties to select new arbitrators and to conduct a new arbitration proceeding is not a 'final appealable order' as defined in R.C. 2505.02." Id. at syllabus. The Stewart court, citing Bellaire City Schools Bd. of Edn. v. Paxton (1979), 59 Ohio St.2d 65, 391 N.E.2d 1021, enumerated the requirements to establish an appealable order pursuant to R.C. 2505.02: "'If the trial court's order lacks one of the three qualifications of: (a) affecting a substantial right; (b) determining the action; (c) preventing a judgment, it cannot be a final order, for all three attributes must concur to make it such.'" Id. The Stewart court found that "because the trial court order did not vacate only the arbitration award and decision but also provided for a new arbitration proceeding, the order cannot be considered a 'determination of the action' or one which 'prevents a judgment' within the meaning of R.C. 2505.02. No final judgment has been entered by the trial court on the merits of the arbitration award and decision." Id.