Title 9, ArbitrationRelease 119-102
§1 “maritime Transactions” and “commerce” Defined; Exceptions to Operation of Title
Title 9 › CHAPTER 1 — GENERAL PROVISIONS › § 1
Summary
Defines two key terms used in ship and trade cases. "Maritime transactions" means things like ship charters, shipping papers, dock deals, ship supplies or repairs, collisions, and other foreign-trade matters maritime courts hear. "Commerce" means trade among states, with other countries, or in U.S. territories (including D.C.); it excludes employment contracts of seamen, railroad, or similar workers.
Full Legal Text
Title 9, §1
Arbitration, Source: USLM XML via OLRC
“Maritime transactions”, as herein defined, means charter parties, bills of lading of water carriers, agreements relating to wharfage, supplies furnished vessels or repairs to vessels, collisions, or any other matters in foreign commerce which, if the subject of controversy, would be embraced within admiralty jurisdiction; “commerce”, as herein defined, means commerce among the several States or with foreign nations, or in any Territory of the United States or in the District of Columbia, or between any such Territory and another, or between any such Territory and any State or foreign nation, or between the District of Columbia and any State or Territory or foreign nation, but nothing herein contained shall apply to contracts of employment of seamen, railroad employees, or any other class of workers engaged in foreign or interstate commerce.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
DerivationAct Feb. 12, 1925, ch. 213, § 1, 43 Stat. 883.
Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries
Short Title
of 2022 Amendment Pub. L. 117–90, § 1, Mar. 3, 2022, 136 Stat. 26, provided that: “This Act [enacting chapter 4 of this title, amending section 2, 208, and 307 of this title, and enacting provisions set out as a note under section 401 of this title] may be cited as the ‘Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act of 2021’.”
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
9 U.S.C. § 1
Title 9, Arbitration
Last Updated
Aug 21, 2026
Release point: 119-102