On October 2, the justices will kick off their term with three arbitration cases, which have been consolidated for one hour of oral argument. In National Labor Relations Board v. Murphy Oil USA, Epic Systems Corp. v. Lewis, and Ernst & Young v. Morris, the justices agreed to decide whether agreements to forgo class actions or collective proceedings and instead resolve disputes between an employer and its employees through arbitration are enforceable under the Federal Arbitration Act. The NLRB – then represented by the Office of the Solicitor General – filed its petition for review in September 2016, before the presidential election in November. In late June of this year, the United States (but not the NLRB) filed a “friend of the court” brief supporting the employers, rather than the employees; the NLRB is likely to file its own brief in August.
