Filed Date: Oct. 8, 2025
Case Ongoing
Clearinghouse coding complete
This case challenged Executive Order No. 14343, issued by President Donald Trump on August 28, 2025. The order is a follow-up to Executive Order 14251, which excluded numerous agencies and subdivisions (designated as having primary national security functions) from the collective-bargaining protections of the Federal and Foreign Service Labor-Management Relations Statutes (collectively, the FSLMRS). Executive Order 14343 excluded six additional agencies, including the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), from labor coverage under the FSLMRS, despite the fact that NASA’s primary mission is not related to national security and that it has maintained collective bargaining relationships with federal employee unions for decades. Similar cases challenging Executive Orders 14251 and 14343 are collected here.
On October 8, 2025, the International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers (IFPTE) filed this lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against President Donald Trump and Acting Administrator of NASA, Sean Duffy. The IFPTE is a labor organization whose local unions serve as bargaining representatives for federal employees across various agencies, including NASA. The organization alleged that the implementation of EO 14343 was ultra vires and violated the First and Fifth Amendments. The IFPTE also claimed that Defendant Duffy’s conduct violated the Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The IFPTE sought a declaratory judgment, permanent injunctive relief, and attorney’s fees. The case was assigned to Judge Carl J. Nichols.
In their complaint, the IFPTE asserted that EO 14343 (i) exceeded the President’s authority under 5 U.S.C. § 7103(b); (ii) was issued in retaliation for IFPTE’s protected speech and petitioning activities, violating the First Amendment; (iii) violated the Fifth Amendment by nullifying collective bargaining agreements without proper justification, denying equal protection by targeting disfavored unions, and depriving IFPTE of contract rights without procedural due process; and (iv) was arbitrary, capricious, and beyond statutory authority under the APA.
The IFPTE filed a notice of related cases on October 10, 2025, asserting that its case involved a common issue of fact and arose from the same event or transaction as eight other cases: National Weather Service Employees Organization v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-02947 (D.D.C.); Nat’l Treas. Employees Union v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-02990 (D.D.C.); Nat’l Treas. Employees Union v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-00935 (D.D.C.); Am. Foreign Service Ass’n v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-01030 (D.D.C.); Fed. Educ. Ass’n v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-01362 (D.D.C.); Am. Fed’n of Labor-Congress of Indus. Orgs. v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-02445 (D.D.C.); Nat’l Ass’n of Agriculture Employees v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-2657 (D.D.C.), Am. Fed’n of State, County, and Municipal Employees, and AFL-CIO v. Trump, No. 1:25-cv-3306 (D.D.C.).
This case is ongoing.
Summary Authors
Claire Pollard (10/9/2025)
Dahlia Gottlieb (11/13/2025)
For PACER's information on parties and their attorneys, see: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71586723/parties/international-federation-of-professional-technical-engineers-afl-cio-v/
Nichols, Carl John (District of Columbia)
Block, Sarah M. (District of Columbia)
McGillivary, Gregory K. (District of Columbia)
Miller-Bartley, Patrick John (District of Columbia)
See docket on RECAP: https://www.courtlistener.com/docket/71586723/international-federation-of-professional-technical-engineers-afl-cio-v/
Last updated May 31, 2026, 4:14 a.m.
State / Territory:
Case Type(s):
Presidential/Gubernatorial Authority
Special Collection(s):
Trump Administration 2.0: Challenges to the Government
Key Dates
Filing Date: Oct. 8, 2025
Case Ongoing: Yes
Plaintiffs
Plaintiff Description:
International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers (IFPTE) is a labor organization whose members include thousands of workers employed by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
Plaintiff Type(s):
Non-profit NON-religious organization
Public Interest Lawyer: No
Filed Pro Se: No
Class Action Sought: No
Class Action Outcome: Not sought
Defendants
Federal
Donald J Trump
Sean Duffy
Defendant Type(s):
Case Details
Causes of Action:
Administrative Procedure Act, 5 U.S.C. §§ 551 et seq.
Constitutional Clause(s):
Due Process: Procedural Due Process
Other Dockets:
District of District of Columbia 1:25-cv-03615
Available Documents:
Outcome
Prevailing Party: None Yet / None
Relief Sought:
Relief Granted:
Source of Relief:
Issues
General/Misc.:
Discrimination Area:
Conditions of Employment (including assignment, transfer, hours, working conditions, etc.)
Presidential/Gubernatorial Authority:
Case Summary of International Federation of Professional & Technical Engineers, AFL-CIO v. Trump, Civil Rights Litig. Clearinghouse, https://clearinghouse.net/case/47041/ (last updated 11/13/2025).