Judge Katherine Forrest
Under the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) Brady alleged defendant labor union’s (Local 817) retaliation against his free speech rights. The court explained it would lack jurisdiction under the LMRDA unless Brady was a member of Local 817 or a "member in substance" who fulfilled membership requirements "despite the fact that [] union officials have not performed the ministerial acts necessary to give formal recognition to [] status as a member." Noting that Brady never claimed formal membership in Local 817, the court found him not a "member in substance" because he did not satisfy membership requirements. Local 817 membership is governed by its constitution, which provides that Local 817 must accept a membership application from an eligible applicant. However, Brady did not allege that Local 817 accepted an application from him. Thus, he never "fulfilled the requirements of membership" and was not a member in substance. To accept Brady’s claim that he was "eligible for membership" under §4.01 of the union’s constitution, and not ineligible under the conditions listed in §4.02 thereof, the court would have to conclude that the entirety of §4.03 of the union’s constitution was "mere surplusage."
