On May 18, 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed the decision by Judge James D. Peterson of the Western District of Wisconsin granting summary judgment to Dane County Professional Social Workers, Local 2634, AFSCME, AFL-CIO arising from claims brought against it by a former member. The Plaintiff, a social worker, brought an action against the Dane County Department of Human Services and the Union, alleging claims of breach of duty of fair representation against the union and breach of collective bargaining agreement against the department, as well as various constitutional claims against his supervisor, the union, and the department. The United States District Court for the Western District of Wisconsin, Judge James D. Peterson, granted defendants’ motion for summary judgment, concluding that there were no facts of record from which a reasonable jury could conclude that the Union breached its fair duty of representation to the Plaintiff. The Seventh Circuit subsequently affirmed the grant of summary judgment, stating, “[t]aken as a whole, the record shows that the Union’s refusal to arbitrate [the Plaintiff’s] grievance was reasonable, and [the Plaintiff] has failed to adduce any evidence from which a jury could conclude the Union disregarded his rights or failed to adequately represent him.”
Attorneys Aaron Halstead and Colin Good represented AFSCME and its member in briefs filed with the Western District and Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals.
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