Hornby v. Close

UK court case in 1867 in which it was decided that trade unions were illegal associations. The decision, overturned two years later by a special act of Parliament, indirectly led to the full legalization of trade unions under the Trade Union Acts 1871–76.

The court case arose after the treasurer of the Bradford branch of the Boilermakers' Society stole £24 from union funds. The union took him to court, but the local magistrate ruled that union funds were not protected by law, and that prosecution could not be brought. This decision was upheld in a higher court where it was also held that although trade unions had ceased to be criminal organizations since the Friendly Societies Act of 1865, they remained illegal associations because they acted in ‘restraint of trade’. The implication of this was that union funds had no legal protection and could be embezzled with impunity. At the time, the case seriously weakened the position of trade unions.