United States Tenth Circuit

In a dispute involving the constitutionality of fees assessed by a city and its union against employees who were not members of the union, summary judgment in favor of the non-member employees awarding certain refunds is affirmed in part and remanded in part where: 1) the union failed to meet its burden of proof in showing what portion of fair share fees benefitted non-member employees, and thus they were entitled to a full refund; and 2) the district court applied the wrong standard in ordering the city to refund amounts it received under an indemnification provision.

Appellate Information

• Decided 09/20/2006
• Published 09/20/2006

Judges

• TYMKOVICH, Circuit Judge., Before HARTZ, McKAY, and TYMKOVICH, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Tenth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• Jeremiah A. Collins, Bredhoff & Kaiser, P.L.L.C., Washington, DC (Stanley K. Kotovsky, Jr., Tinnin Law Firm, Albuquerque, NM, for Defendants-Appellants City of Albuquerque, Jim Baca, and Peggy Hardwick, and Robert Alexander, Bredhoff & Kaiser, P.L.L.C., Washington, DC, and Jerry Todd Wertheim, Jones Snead Wertheim Wentworth & Jaramillo, PA, Santa Fe, NM, for Defendant-Appellant Local 624, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, with him on the briefs) for Defendant-Appellants., Raymond J. LaJeunesse, Jr., National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation, Inc., Springfield, VA (Robert L. Piddock, Albuquerque, NM, with him on the brief) for Plaintiffs-Appellees.