WASHINGTON, D.C. (Feb. 28, 2024) – NFIB filed an amicus brief in the case Starbucks Corporation v. M. Kathleen McKinney at the United States Supreme Court. The case concerns the National Labor Relations Board’s (NLRB) requests for injunctions under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) using the traditional four-factor test for preliminary injunctions or a more lenient standard. NFIB filed the brief with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers.

“The Sixth Circuit’s current standard is harmful to small businesses as it allows the NLRB to have unchecked and long-term meddling in small employer’s lawful business practices and operations,” said Beth Milito, Executive Director of NFIB’s Small Business Legal Center. “We ask the Court to reverse the Sixth Circuit’s decision and clarify that the traditional four-factor test is the proper standard for preliminary injunctions.”

NFIB’s brief makes two main arguments: 1) the watered-down injunction standard results in an extreme and unwarranted form of deference to the NLRB, and 2) the NLRB has leveraged its watered-down injunction standard to engage in substantial and unchecked interference with small businesses.

The NFIB Small Business Legal Center protects the rights of small business owners in the nation’s courts. NFIB is currently active in more than 40 cases in federal and state courts across the country and in the U.S. Supreme Court.