Mauriello Law Firm Obtains $4.2 Million JAMS Arbitration Award

November 2022

On November 21, 2022, a Los Angeles-based arbitrator with JAMS awarded Mauriello Law Firm client PDM Apparel, LLC (“PDM”) $4.2 Million in damages against 818 Zulin Jituan Co., Ltd. (“818”). The arbitration was undertaken under JAMS International Arbitration Rules.

PDM is a full-service apparel company based in San Clemente, California, which sources high quality products from its global network of partner factories for partners in the USA and internationally. With the onset of COVID 19, PDM became engaged in sourcing personal protective equipment (“PPE”) products for the medical profession and hospitals in America.

818 is an international distributor and supplier of examination medical grade nitrile gloves and is based in Cambodia.

In late 2020, PDM received orders from various customers for the purchase of over a million boxes of blue nitrile powder-free examination gloves. Blue nitrile powder-free gloves are a particularly specialized product, designed for the health care industry and patient handling. They do not activate any of the allergic reactions that occur from exposure to latex gloves. Nitrile gloves thus have been the “gold standard” for the medical and healthcare professions around the world, including for use in the efforts to combat the COVID pandemic.

Following a series of trial orders and third-party inspections, in January 2021 PDM entered into a contract with 818 for the purchase of blue nitrile gloves. PDM wired over $4.5 Million to the bank accounts of various 818 affiliates in Asia. The gloves then received by PDM were not blue nitrile gloves but instead were white latex gloves, completely unsuitable for medical use, and largely useless. The gloves were deficient in other respects as well. Netting out the value of a small percentage of conforming goods received by PDM, PDM was out of pocket approximately $4.2 Million.

The case is PDM Apparel, LLC v. 818 Zulin Jituan Co., Ltd., JAMS Arbitration No. 1200059015.

If you have a contract dispute or other business dispute, do not hesitate to contact attorney Thomas Mauriello to see if he can assist you.