The fight is already set over who will replace the late Justice Antonin Scalia on the Supreme Court. In the meantime, the court is split evenly along ideological lines, and any tied ruling would send that case back to lower courts.
That's creating uncertainty for pending cases this year -- including one that could have big impacts for two Delaware businesses: Tyson Foods and DuPont.
The Supreme Court first heard arguments last year in a class action suit against Tyson, which is a major poultry processor on the Delmarva Peninsula.
But this case came from slaughterhouse workers in Iowa in 2007. They say they weren't paid for the time they spent donning and doffing protective gear and transitioning into their shifts. Instead, they were paid gang time -- or only for the time they spent on the production line.
Juries and lower circuit court judges have upheld those allegations, doling out $6 million in damages so far -- but Tyson has pushed back, which sent the case to the nation's highest court in 2015.
At issue is whether the plaintiffs can calculate damages based on an average worker -- when those affected might differ based on gear they used in their jobs. The news service Law360 reports the Iowa workers spent anywhere from a minute or two to more than 10 in the locker room pre- and post-shift.
Tyson says that's not fair. Their argument stems from a Supreme Court precedent set in a Wal-Mart case in 2011. But last fall, the Court seemed to be leaning away from that precedent -- Wal-Mart didn't come up when they convened in November.
Justices across the ideological spectrum seemed to think the Tyson case should hinge on a much older decision -- one from 1946, which allowed representative statistics to be used in a non-class action overtime pay law case.
Stakeholders filing briefs on Tyson's behalf have included Dow Chemical, a Michigan company that's currently working to merge with Delaware's DuPont.
Dow is interested in the case because of what it could mean for other businesses that are often involved in class-action suits -- businesses that include DuPont. They're currently battling plaintiffs in West Virginia, who say DuPont spent decades dumping a known carcinogen into their water.
The Supreme Court case also highlights Dow's stake in agricultural interests -- which could take center stage as the DuPont merger continues. The combined company would split into three -- including an agricultural chemicals division.
Iowa and Delaware are lobbying to hang onto that division's headquarters, due in large part to the major presence of agricultural businesses like Tyson within their borders.
The Tyson suit is one of several the high court could take up this year.
