In ruling on a lawsuit brought by three labor unions, Dane County Circuit Judge William Foust has ruled that Wisconsin’s “right to work” statute is unconstitutional because it “amounts to an unconstitutional governmental taking of union funds without compensation since under the law unions must represent people who don’t pay dues” and “that presents an existential threat to unions”: “’While [union] losses today could be characterized by some as minor, they are not isolated and the impact of [the law] over time is threatening to the unions’ very economic viability.’”

Although Foust’s ruling is very likely to be overturned on appeal, Foust himself “noted that no other state court had struck down a right-to-work law on those grounds, but said he wasn’t obligated to follow other states.”

A news report on the ruling, written for TPM by Scott Bauer and Todd Richmond, is available at: http://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/scott-walker-right-to-work-law-unconstitutional?utm.