WI Supreme Court will decide Act 10; ruling could ‘put an end to our long nightmare’

By M.D. Kittle | Wisconsin Reporter

MADISON – After two long years of legal limbo, the Wisconsin Supreme Court has agreed to take up the constitutionality of the state’s controversial Act 10, the law led by Gov. Scott Walker that gutted collective bargaining for most Badger State public employees.

One constitutional expert who has urged the court to settle the confusion surrounding the case, said a definitive ruling would “put an end to our long nightmare.”

The case of Madison Teachers Inc. v. Scott Walker is one of four high profile cases the high court has decided to review.

In its certification to the Supreme Court, the state District IV Court of Appeals wrote of the necessity of the high court’s ruling because of the “sweeping statewide effect on public employers, public employees, and taxpayers and because the need to clarify and develop law relating to associational rights and the home-rule authority of municipalities.”

A decision by the Supreme Court is expected to “clarify the effect of Act 10 and provide guidance to public employers and employees on how to approach collective bargaining,” according to a statement from the high court. “A decision also may help settle other pending cases spawned from Act 10 ad possibly reduce future litigation on some issues.”

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