Mandatory Membership, Dues Constitutional, Wisconsin Bar Says

A suit challenging the requirement that lawyers licensed in Wisconsin join the state bar and pay mandatory dues should be tossed, the State Bar of Wisconsin said.

U.S. Supreme Court precedent requires dismissal of the plaintiffs’ First Amendment challenge to the membership and dues requirement, the state bar said in a motion to dismiss filed May 21.

The Supreme Court upheld similar requirements imposed by the California bar against First Amendment free-speech and free-association challenges, the Wisconsin bar said.

Under the Supreme Court’s reasoning, the membership and dues requirements are justified by the state’s interest in regulating the legal profession ...