88
Opinion of the Court
tion between independent and embedded proceedings and its consequences for finality were so firmly established at the time of § 16's enactment that we should assume Congress meant to incorporate them into § 16(a)(3). See Brief for Petitioners 23-26.
We disagree. It does not appear that, at the time of § 16(a)(3)'s enactment, the rules of finality were firmly established in cases like this one, where the District Court both ordered arbitration and dismissed the remaining claims.4 We also note that at that time, Courts of Appeals did not have a uniform approach to finality with respect to orders directing arbitration in "embedded" proceedings.5 The term "final decision," by contrast, enjoys a consistent and longstanding interpretation. Certainly the plain language of the statutory text does not suggest that Congress intended to incorporate the rather complex independent/
4 Seacoast Motors of Salisbury, Inc., supra, at 628 (noting in 1998 that the Court had not before addressed the question whether a district court order directing arbitration and dismissing the proceedings was a "final decision" within the meaning of § 16(a)(3)); Napleton, supra, at 1212 (noting in 1998 that the appeal at issue adds an "unfamiliar ingredient" because the District Court ordered arbitration and dismissed the proceedings).
5 Cincinnati Gas & Elec. Co. v. Benjamin F. Shaw Co., 706 F. 2d 155, 158 (CA6 1983) (rejecting the argument that because a declaratory judgment and other relief was sought in suit where arbitration was ordered, order to arbitrate should not be appealable); Howard Elec. & Mechanical Co. v. Frank Briscoe Co., 754 F. 2d 847, 849 (CA9 1985) (plaintiff brought suit for work performed under contract and then sought arbitration; order compelling arbitration held appealable). Cf. In re Hops Antitrust Litigation, 832 F. 2d 470, 472-473 (CA8 1987) (District Court order requiring arbitration of some claims before it is not a final appealable order because other matters remained pending before the court); County of Durham v. Richards & Assocs., Inc., 742 F. 2d 811, 813, n. 3 (CA4 1984) (noting that a number of Courts of Appeals have held that an order compelling arbitration may be appealed even when it is entered in the course of a dispute over the underlying claim). See generally 15B C. Wright, A. Miller, & E. Cooper, Federal Practice and Procedure § 3914.17, pp. 19-25 (1992).
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