High Court: Union Has to Give Notice of Fee Increase

(Newsroom America) -- The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that a union must give nonmembers a chance to immediately object to unexpected fee increases that all members are required to pay in a closed shop.

The court ruled in favor of Dianne Knox and other nonmembers of the Service Employees International Union’s Local 1000 who sought to object and opt out of a $12 million special assessment union officials tried to solicit from its California public sector members.

Knox and the others maintained the union failed to give a legally required notice the increase was going to be levied.

The union, as well as the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, said the union's annual notices was sufficient to fulfill the requirement, but the high court, in a 7-2 decision, dissented.

The majority decision was written by Justice Samuel Alito.

The 9th Circuit is the nation's most liberal - and most overturned - federal court district.

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