U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit Sides With Federal Employees in Nia Lucas v. American Federation of Government Employees, et al

On August 15, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit ruled in favor of former Small Business Administration employee Nia Lucas, holding that federal employees may sue their labor unions for race, sex, and disability discrimination prohibited by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

The D.C. Circuit reversed the district court’s dismissal of Lucas’s claims, rejecting the argument that the Civil Service Reform Act precluded such suits. This decision safeguards the right of federal employees to sue their labor unions when they experience discrimination.

The Hecker Fink team, led by Joshua Matz, represented Nia Lucas in collaboration with David R. Dorey of Liff, Walsh & Simmons and Brian Wolfman from the Georgetown Law Appellate Courts Immersion Clinic.

Read the full decision here.