Federal Arbitration Act
The Federal Arbitration Act requires courts to enforce many private arbitration agreements. But not all.
- Justice Gorsuch, Flowers Foods, Inc. v. Brock, 608 U.S. ___ (2026)
What Is the Federal Arbitration Act?
Congress passed the Federal Arbitration Act in 1925 to make private arbitration agreements legally enforceable, courts had long refused to honor them, treating arbitration as an improper attempt to oust judicial jurisdiction. The FAA reversed that default: a written agreement to arbitrate is now valid, irrevocable, and enforceable as a matter of federal policy. The Act operates in two phases. Before an award, a party can ask a court to compel arbitration (§4) or stay a parallel lawsuit pending arbitration (§3). After an award, a party can ask a court to confirm it (§9), vacate it for serious misconduct (§10), or modify it for clerical errors (§11). The §1 exclusion: The FAA does not apply to employment contracts of transportation workers (seamen, railroad employees, or any other class of workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce) a carve-out that has spawned significant litigation over who qualifies.
Before the Award, Compelling Arbitration
9 U.S.C. §§3–4When a party to a federal lawsuit is subject to an arbitration agreement, a court can act in two ways.
After the Award, Confirm, Vacate, or Modify
9 U.S.C. §§9–10–11Once an arbitration award is issued, a party who refuses to comply can be brought to court. What the court can do depends on whether the award is deficient.
Cases on the Tracker
A court that stayed claims under §3 retains jurisdiction to confirm or vacate the resulting award under §§9–10. (Sotomayor, May 14, 2026)
Does the FAA transportation-worker exemption cover last-mile delivery drivers?
The "look-through" doctrine does not apply to §§9–10 petitions, jurisdiction must appear on the face of the motion.
A court must "look through" a §4 petition to the underlying dispute to find federal jurisdiction; the FAA alone is not enough.