Threshold Arbitrability Questions: SCOTUS Rules That Courts, Not Arbitrators, Must Decide Which Contract Governs

On May 23, 2024, the Supreme Court unanimously ruled that when parties have agreed to more than one contract – one that contains a clause sending threshold arbitrability questions to an arbitrator and one that sends those disputes to a court – a court must decide which contract governs.

Case Background

Suski involved a conflict between two contracts executed between the parties. The first (and earlier) contract contained a delegation clause, which delegated threshold questions of arbitrability to an arbitrator to decide. The second (and later) contract made clear that courts, not arbitrators, must decide these threshold arbitrability questions. After a dispute arose between the parties, the petitioner moved to compel arbitration. The district court denied the motion, finding the second (and later) contract governed. The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court then accepted the petitioner's certiorari petition and found that when contracts