Kaul seeks to throw out challenge of Act 10
Unions filed lawsuit over state law passed in 2011
MADISON - Democratic Attorney General Josh Kaul is seeking to throw out a lawsuit challenging a law passed by Republicans that crippled his party's largest funders.
Kaul on Thursday asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the 2011 law known as Act 10, which all but eliminated collective bargaining for most public employees — decimating the coffers of labor unions.
The attorney general argued the court does not have jurisdiction because the case had previously been closed before its plaintiffs — the International Union of Operating Engineers — revived it in May.
Kaul also requested that he and Democratic Gov. Tony Evers be removed from the lawsuit because they did not enforce a portion of the law at issue. Former Republican Gov. Scott Walker and AG Brad Schimel were in office at the time of the original challenge.
The lawsuit was brought by two arms of the International Union of Operating Engineers in February 2018. It was dropped months later and then revived in May 2019, substituting Evers for Walker and Kaul for Schimel.
Kaul in the request for dismissal called the attempt to revive the lawsuit after voluntarily dropping it "improper," but said that if the groups wish to challenge the law, they could do so in a new lawsuit.
"Plaintiffs can litigate their constitutional challenge to Act 10 if they so choose, just not in this closed case," Kaul said in the filing.
The filing also cited past cases justifying the claim that Kaul and Evers were not responsible in the case. It cited one ruling saying the fact a governor is under a general duty to enforce state laws does not make him a proper defendant in every action attacking the constitutionality of a state statute.
International Union of Operating Engineers spokesperson Roger Putnam told the Journal Sentinel the group is aware of the filing.
“Our lawyers are assessing our legal options to pursue this issue in the most efficient manner," he said in an email.
Act 10 has been upheld by state and federal courts in other cases.