John CHAPMAN and Terry G. VILLAIRE, Appellants,
v.
KING MOTOR COMPANY OF SOUTH FLORIDA, a Florida corporation, Appellee.
District Court of Appeal of Florida, Fourth District.
*821 Sharon C. Degnan and Diane H. Tutt of Diane H. Tutt, P.A., Plantation, for appellants.
Ricardo A. Reyes of Tobin & Reyes, P.A., Boca Raton and Nancy W. Gregoire of Bunnell, Woulfe, Kirschbaum, Keller, McIntyre & Gregoire, P.A., Fort Lauderdale, for appellee.
WARNER, J.
In this appeal, appellants/plaintiffs challenge the trial court's order requiring the parties to arbitrate their case before they had the opportunity to conduct discovery and have an evidentiary hearing on the issue of the unconscionability of the arbitration clause. Because we conclude that an evidentiary hearing is required, we reverse.
Appellants filed a complaint for violations of the Motor Vehicle Retail Sales Finance Act, the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, and for fraud and deceit in connection with the purchase of an automobile from defendant. They further alleged that the arbitration agreement contained in the documents they signed was unconscionable. Without an evidentiary hearing, the trial court ordered the case to arbitration.
A trial court's decision on the validity of an arbitration agreement is a matter of contract interpretation subject to de novo review. See Ocwen Fed. Bank FSB v. LVWD, Ltd.,
We therefore reverse and remand for the court to conduct an evidentiary hearing *822 on the validity of the arbitration clause.
STEVENSON and TAYLOR, JJ., concur.
