U.S. Supreme Court
Michael A. Scarcella/ ALM

The three cases, consolidated for an hour of argument on the new term's opening day, offered the justices a clash between the commands of two old, federal laws—the National Labor Relations Act, which protects employees' rights to engage in “concerted” activities, and the Federal Arbitration Act, which mandates enforcement of valid arbitration agreements.

The high court's arbitration decisions offer a “well trod path” for resolving the issue, argued Kirkland & Ellis partner Paul Clement, counsel to the three employers. Any tie, he added, “goes to the FAA.”