Chicago Teachers Union Escapes Post-Janus Fee Refund Suit

The Chicago Teachers Union has no duty under federal antitrust or state tort law to return “fair share” fees it collected from a nonmember before the U.S. Supreme Court held the mandatory fees unconstitutional, a Chicago federal judge ruled.

The lawsuit is part of a wave of fee-refund cases brought by nonunion public school teachers since the justices held in 2018’s Janus v. AFSCME that forcing nonmembers to help cover collective bargaining costs violated the First Amendment.

The proposed class action was filed by Chicago public school teacher Joseph Ocol in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of ...