T
he National Association of Realtors (NAR) had a string of wins in July, with three lawsuits naming the association as a defendant being dismissed. However, those dismissals are now under appeal. A Texas lawsuit challenging NAR's mandatory membership policies was dismissed last month and is now headed to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

    The case, brought by broker/owner Lou Eytalis in November 2024, alleges that NAR and other defendants engaged in monopolistic practices by requiring brokers to join multiple associations as a precondition for access to MLS services. Eytalis filed an appeal on August 18, challenging Judge Reed O'Connor's dismissal of all claims.

    This is the third case naming NAR as a defendant to be appealed in the past month. The organization previously scored court victories in similar cases involving mandatory membership and antitrust allegations. A Pennsylvania case brought by broker Maurice Muhammad was appealed to the Third Circuit on August 11, while an antitrust case brought by Homie Technology was appealed to the Tenth Circuit on August 7.