A trial appears on tap in a lawsuit filed by three Louisiana hair braiders who argue that state licensing regulations make it unconstitutionally burdensome for them to practice their desired profession.
Plaintiffs Ashley-Roxanne N’Dakpri, Lynn Schofield and Evangela Michelle Robertson filed the lawsuit in 2019 in the19th Judicial District Court, with support from a nonprofit public-interest law firm, the Institute for Justice (IJ). The parties in the occupational licensing case, including the Louisiana State Board of Cosmetology, discussed the issues in court last week.
“Plaintiffs – all hair braiders throughout Louisiana – are required to endure hundreds of hours of unnecessary training and complete a practical examination, to legally do the very job they have been doing for years or decades,” the hair braiders’ complaint states. “And actually obtaining the necessary permit is virtually impossible.”
Only three Louisiana cosmetology schools provide training for the permit needed to legally practice hair braiding, according to the lawsuit, and only one of these three schools offers the alternative hair design curriculum. That school, located in Monroe, is 260 miles from where the plaintiffs live, the complaint says.
The Institute for Justice argues that the Louisiana Constitution strongly protects residents’ economic liberty and that the state’s hair-braiding license will not survive the constitutional challenge presented in the litigation.
“ IJ is confident that we’ll be victorious as the case looks headed to trial, whenever it may be, and that the extra time will only prove more how unconstitutional Louisiana’s licensing regime for hair braiders is,” Conor Beck, IJ’s communications project manager, told the Louisiana Record in an email. “I’m careful to predict when those next steps (in the litigation) may be, but it most likely won’t be for several more months.”
The cosmetology board has exceeded its authority in enforcing its rules for licensing hair braiders, according to the lawsuit.
“The alternative hair design permit and its implementing regulations are the result of an unconstitutional exercise of legislative authority by the board and an unconstitutional delegation of power from the board to private cosmetology schools,” the complaint says.