Justices Turn to History in Bakery Driver Arbitration Case (1)

Flowers Foods Inc. and drivers who deliver its baked goods faced tough questions on past understandings of an arbitration carveout and the difficulty of adding a transportation industry requirement at the US Supreme Court Tuesday.

Several justices pressed the parties on the text of the Federal Arbitration Act exemption—which applies to certain workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce—and its nearly 100-year-old history, including how courts understood “seamen” and whether that category was based on which company someone worked for or what type of work they performed.

The high court regularly hears arbitration-related cases and last addressed the FAA’s ...