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AUBURN HILLS, Mich. — By and large, arbitrators are finding in favor of Chrysler instead of the dealers seeking reinstatement.

Auto Remarketing reached out to the automaker for an update Wednesday and, according to a spokesperson, Chrysler has prevailed in a total of 41 cases, while 14 decisions have gone on behalf of arbitrating dealers.

Mike Palese also indicated that more than 125 arbitration cases have been withdrawn, dismissed or abandoned. This leaves Chrysler, dealers and arbitrators with fewer than 50 cases remaining to be resolved.

The company's latest win was against Painter Sun Country Chrysler Jeep Dodge in Utah.

OEM leadership reiterated its stance about how critical it was to trim down its dealership count via the bankruptcy process.

"The actions to right-size our dealer network were a necessary part of Chrysler Group's viability, approved by a federal bankruptcy court and central to the interim financing and partnership with Fiat," the automaker stressed in a statement to Auto Remarketing on Wednesday.

"The only alternative would have been complete liquidation, which would have resulted in all 3,200 dealers closing, hundreds of thousands of lost jobs, and the company defaulting on taxpayer loans," the company continued.

However, not all of the cases have gone Chrysler's way. The automaker's latest lost was to Rimrock Chrysler Jeep in Montana.

"While we are pleased that the decisions of many arbitrators reflect a keen appreciation of these circumstances, Chrysler Group is disappointed that some decisions undermine the Federal Bankruptcy Court Order that affirmed the rationalization process used to reject the dealership agreements," executives stated.

"Despite this, we are confident we have the dealer network in place that allows existing dealers to be successful, which will result in greater investment in their communities, employees and customers and, ultimately, will enable the Chrysler Group to repay the U.S. taxpayers in a timely manner," they went on to say.

In an intriguing development, recent reports have surfaced about how a Missouri dealer that prevailed in arbitration now has filed a lawsuit against Chrysler. The crux of the filing indicates Century Motor Corp., of Wentzville, Mo., a St. Louis suburb, received a letter of intent that allegedly violates the federal dealer arbitration law.

Century's legal team asserts that dealerships seeking reinstatement have to meet requirements not stipulated to other Chrysler dealerships that were not a part of the termination process.

On Wednesday, the automaker released a response to Auto Remarketing regarding the Missouri dealer's claims.

"Chrysler Group is following the letter of the law regarding the federal dealer arbitration statute by providing Century Motors — and other arbitrating dealers who've prevailed in the arbitration process — with the company's standard and usual letter of Intent (LOI)," the automaker emphasized.

"A standard and usual LOI is the only remedy the federal statute provides to arbitrating dealers who prevail in arbitration," the company went on to state. "These dealers must then meet the requirements of the LOI before having the opportunity to join Chrysler's dealer network.

"It would be inappropriate to discuss the matter further at this time as it is in litigation," Chrysler concluded in its statement to Auto Remarketing.