Cicchiello, J. v. Service Employee International

**What Happened** A worker named Cicchiello sued the Service Employee International Union Healthcare Pennsylvania, claiming the union broke their contract with him, retaliated against him, and punished him for reporting wrongdoing (whistleblowing). However, this wasn't the first time Cicchiello had made these complaints - he had already filed a similar lawsuit in federal court against the same union making essentially the same claims, and that case had already been finished. **What the Court Decided** The Pennsylvania court threw out Cicchiello's lawsuit without considering the merits of his claims. The judge ruled that this was "repetitive litigation" - meaning Cicchiello was trying to re-fight the same battle he had already fought and lost in federal court. Under Pennsylvania court rules, you generally can't keep filing new lawsuits making the same claims against the same parties once a case has been resolved. **Why This Matters for Workers** This case shows that workers need to be strategic about where and when they file employment lawsuits. Once you've had your day in court on specific claims, you typically can't start over with a new lawsuit making the same arguments. Workers should work with experienced attorneys to ensure their first lawsuit includes all relevant claims and is filed in the most appropriate court.