Horn Williamson has filed a petition with the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania on behalf of 37 homeowners whose construction defect claims against Toll Brothers were dismissed without a hearing. The case, Andrzejczyk et al. v. Toll Brothers, Inc., et al., asks the Court to determine whether the American Arbitration Association’s Construction Rule 34—allowing arbitrators to grant dispositive motions without holding a hearing—violates Pennsylvania law and deprives citizens of their right to be heard.
The homeowners, representing 19 families, purchased their homes directly from Toll Brothers between 2003 and 2005 in developments across southeastern Pennsylvania. Over time, they discovered massive hidden defects, including stucco failures, water infiltration and other building envelope breakdowns that led to rot, mold and structural deterioration. Despite repeated requests for repairs, Toll Brothers refused to address the damage, leaving the families to cope with worsening conditions for more than a decade.
“These families have lived for years with the devastating impact of systemic construction failures,” said Jennifer Horn, founding partner of Horn Williamson. “They did everything they were supposed to do—reported the problems, sought repairs and followed the arbitration process. What they were denied was the most basic right in our system of justice: the right to a hearing.”
After Toll Brothers rejected repair requests, the families turned to Horn Williamson in 2017 and 2018 to pursue claims under their home purchase agreements. The firm filed actions in the Court of Common Pleas, which were later transferred to arbitration before the American Arbitration Association in 2019 and consolidated for hearing. Horn Williamson litigated the matter through years of discovery, motions and appeals—fighting to ensure that their clients’ evidence of widespread stucco and cladding defects would be heard.
Throughout the arbitration, Horn Williamson attorneys Jennifer Horn and Ryan Lockman resisted Toll Brothers’ repeated efforts to remove the first arbitrator, who had ruled against Toll on key discovery issues. Despite the American Arbitration Association’s earlier refusals, the arbitrator was abruptly removed in 2023 without explanation. The newly appointed arbitrator, Kevin Slakas, canceled the scheduled hearing and, on February 14, 2024, dismissed all 37 homeowners’ claims without taking testimony or allowing oral argument, citing AAA Rule 34.
Horn Williamson immediately petitioned the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas to vacate the arbitration decision, arguing that the homeowners had been denied their statutory right to a full and fair hearing under Pennsylvania’s Uniform Arbitration Act. After both the trial and Superior Courts upheld the dismissal, the firm filed a Petition for Allowance of Appeal now pending before the state’s highest court.
“This issue extends far beyond our clients,” said Lockman, managing partner at Horn Williamson. “If the courts allow arbitrators to dismiss cases without hearings, then any Pennsylvanian forced into arbitration—from homebuyers to consumers to employees—could lose their chance to present evidence. That’s not arbitration; it’s elimination of due process.”
The petition argues that AAA Rule 34, added in 2015—long after these families bought their homes—conflicts with Pennsylvania law requiring a hearing and the opportunity to present evidence and cross-examine witnesses. The case also highlights how the Superior Court’s decision relied on Johnson v. Toll Brothers (2023), a precedent currently under review in Aloia v. Diament Building Corp. If Johnson is overturned, the legal foundation for the arbitrator’s dismissal collapses.
“These families simply want what the law promises: the chance to be heard,” Horn said. “Our firm will continue fighting to make sure that happens.”