Abstract
The year 1925 proved to be eventful for the United States and for the world. The Scopes Monkey Trial placed evolution in the spotlight. The New Yorker published its first issue. The "Grand Ole Opry´ premiered on the radio as the WSM Barn Dance. And fascism threatened Europe as Benito Mussolini dissolved the Italian Parliament and declared himself "Il Duce," the dictator of Italy, while Adolf Hitler published the first volume of Mein Kampf, written from prison. On a lighter note, Washington, D.C., saw the first National Spelling Bee, won by Frank Neuhauser, an eleven-year-old from Kentucky who correctly spelled ³gladiolus´ to win $500 in gold pieces. The inauguration of our thirtieth President, Calvin Coolidge, occurred that year.
The year 1925 was also when the 69th U.S. Congress enacted the Federal Arbitration Act (FAA), designed to place arbitration agreements on an equal footing with other contracts and allow for their enforcement within the full reach of the U.S. Constitution's Commerce Clause. Exactly 100 years ago, the FAA established a strong federal policy in favor of arbitration that lasts to this day, creating a framework for the enforcement of arbitration agreements. Courts subsequently have interpreted the FAA broadly to apply to a wide range of contracts that contain arbitration clauses and evidence a transaction involving interstate commerce.
In 2025, we are living with pretty much the same statute. It has been amended by Congress only once, in March 2022, to prohibit employers from requiring employees to arbitrate sexual harassment and sexual assault claims.
Included in
Banking and Finance Law Commons, Business Organizations Law Commons, Commercial Law Commons, Dispute Resolution and Arbitration Commons
