Cozen O’Connor Labor & Employment lawyer David Barron spoke to Law 360 about the recent appeals regarding the NLRB’s requirement to hang posters about an employee’s (or employees’) right to unionize, and how the upcoming presidential election could make it all a moot point. The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) recently filed an appeal of Judge David C. Norton’s decision, invalidating the poster mandate, to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit. Meanwhile, a case involving the same requirement is pending before U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. If the two circuit courts rule differently, or they both rule against the NLRB, it is likely the U.S. Supreme Court will agree to hear one of the cases. However, Barron notes in the article, that the Supreme Court may not have to weigh-in, depending on the results of the upcoming election. “If Romney wins, the odds of a Republican administration continuing to fight for the rule are pretty slim. The rule would most certainly be rescinded, and that would put an end to the litigation.”

The NLRB is currently barred from implementing the rule, which was to go into effect on April 30, by an injunction handed down by the D.C. Circuit. Oral Arguments in that case are set to begin September 11.