New Prime Inc., Petitioner v. Dominic Oliveira.

Summary

The Court held that a court, rather than an arbitrator, must decide whether the Federal Arbitration Act's transportation-worker exclusion applies before compelling arbitration. It further held that the statutory phrase "contracts of employment" includes agreements requiring independent contractors to perform work because that was the phrase's ordinary meaning when Congress enacted the statute. The Court therefore affirmed the judgment that the Act did not authorize compelled arbitration. Justice Ginsburg, concurring, agreed with the result and historical-meaning analysis but emphasized that Congress may draft statutes whose terms evolve with changing circumstances.