July 16, 2025 — The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled this week that federal labor law claims brought by union members against the Association of Legal Aid Attorneys (ALAA) UAW Local 2325 could proceed, rejecting the ALAA’s motion to dismiss the case. The lawsuit was brought over the ALAA’s attempt to expel four Nassau County Legal Aid attorneys – three Jewish and one Christian ally – in retaliation for their filing of an earlier lawsuit opposing the ALAA’s anti-Israel resolution shortly after the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack. The plaintiffs are represented by The Louis D. Brandeis Center for Human Rights Under Law. The federal labor law claims at issue are brought under the Labor Management Reporting Disclosure Act, a.k.a., the Union Members’ Bill of Rights, will proceed against the ALAA itself and 24 individual union officials who validated the charges against the plaintiffs. The Court agreed to dismiss claims brought against the four individual rank-and-file union members who filed the charges, and to dismiss plaintiffs’ federal, state, and local anti-discrimination law claims. This legal victory in the federal court proceeding follows a victory in March before UAW’s highest adjudicatory body, the Public Review Board, which nullified the ALAA’s expulsion charges as violative of the UAW constitution. Uproar in response to this resolution echoed throughout the legal community, including from several non-profit legal services providers employing ALAA’s members, including the Legal Aid Society of Nassau County; the Legal Aid Society, which serves New York City; and the New York Legal Assistance Group. The Bronx Defenders issued a statement condemning a similarly anti-Semitic statement made by its chapter of the ALAA. “We are enormously gratified with this ruling vindicating our clients’ federal labor law rights to oppose anti-Semitism in their union, including their right to sue over a virulently anti-Israel resolution proposed just weeks after the October 7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attack,” said the Hon. Kenneth L. Marcus, chairman and CEO of the Brandeis Center. “The Brandeis Center will defend Jewish and non-Jewish union members who stand up for themselves and against anti-Semitism with all the lawful tools available to them.” “In standing up for what is right, these courageous legal aid lawyers faced expulsion and a campaign of demonization that has taken an enormous toll on them, both professionally and personally,” said the Hon. Rory Lancman, Director of Corporate Initiatives & Senior Counsel at the Brandeis Center. “We look forward to proceeding with this case and fully vindicating their rights under federal labor law.” The Brandeis Center recently formed a new public interest litigation group, The Center for Legal Innovation (CLI), to litigate all forms of anti-Semitism, such as anti-Semitism that occurs in such sectors as the workplace, housing, healthcare, public accommodations, government services, unions, academia, and corporations. Advisory board members include U.S. Attorney General Bill Barr, Solicitor General Paul Clement, and renowned litigators Davida Brook, Brad Karp, Thomas McCarthy, Jason Torchinsky, and Erik Jaffe. Victims seeking pro-bono counsel and support can reach out to David Dince, Brandeis Center Director of Litigation, at ddince@brandeiscenter.com or 917-509-1203 (mobile), 202-559-9296 (office).