In today’s news and commentary, the Supreme Court hears a case about Federal Court jurisdiction over arbitration, a UPS heat inspection lawsuit against OSHA is dismissed, and federal worker unions and NGOs call on the EPA to cease laying off its environmental justice staffers.

A majority of Supreme Court justices signaled support for allowing federal courts to confirm or vacate arbitration awards in cases they originally handled that were stayed for arbitration. In Jules v. Andre Balazs Properties, Adrian Jules challenged a ruling that let a district court enforce an arbitrator’s dismissal of his employment claims and impose sanctions. His counsel argued that the Federal Arbitration Act requires an independent basis for jurisdiction after arbitration. However, during oral argument, justices including Thomas, Kagan, and Jackson questioned that logic, suggesting it makes little sense for courts to lose authority after overseeing a case and sending it to arbitration. They emphasized the need for procedural “closure.” The decision could clarify how arbitration awards are enforced and refine the Court’s earlier ruling in Badgerow v. Walters.

A federal judge dismissed a lawsuit by UPS seeking to block heat-stress monitoring by OSHA, finding the court lacked jurisdiction because no active dispute existed. The judge found ruled the case was both moot and unripe, as the inspection warrants at issue had already expired and OSHA never carried out the monitoring. The challenge also lost relevance after the Biden-era initiative behind the inspections was terminated. UPS had argued OSHA overstepped its authority, claiming workplace conditions in its trucks fall under Department of Transportation oversight. However, the court stressed that federal courts can only decide live controversies. With no ongoing enforcement efforts or credible threat of future action, the judge concluded there was nothing for the court to resolve, bringing the case to a close.

The EPA’s largest union and allied groups wrote a letter that urged the agency and its Administrator, Lee Zeldin, to withdraw 19 layoff notices affecting employees focused on environmental justice. The letter argues that the layoff notices, which were sent in late February, would hinder monitoring and cleanup of PFAS contamination and Superfund sites, reduce critical data on issues like childhood asthma, and limit local groups’ ability to secure federal grants. Signatories include the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Council 238, NAACP, United Steelworkers, and Earthjustice. The cuts come as the EPA already struggles to manage its grants program. Under the Trump administration, environmental justice and DEI offices were eliminated, following executive orders ending race- and sex-based preference programs.