Brock v. Connecticut Union of Telephone Workers, Civ. No. N-85-169 (JAC).
| Decision Date | 28 March 1988 |
| Docket Number | Civ. No. N-85-169 (JAC). |
| Citation | 703 F. Supp. 202 |
| Court | U.S. District Court — District of Connecticut |
| Parties | William E. BROCK, Secretary of Labor v. The CONNECTICUT UNION OF TELEPHONE WORKERS, INC., Local 400, Telecommunications International Union. |
John B. Hughes, Office of U.S. Atty., New Haven, Conn., for plaintiff.
Paul M. Levinson, Mayer, Weiner & Levinson, New York City, for defendants.
RULING ON CROSS-MOTIONS FOR SUMMARY JUDGMENT
The Secretary of Labor ("Secretary" or "plaintiff") commenced this action under Title IV of the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 (the "Act"), 29 U.S.C. § 401, et seq. The former president of the Connecticut Union of Telephone Workers, Inc. ("CUTW"), Local 400 of the Telecommunications International Union ("TIU") filed a complaint with the Secretary of Labor, alleging that moneys received by labor organizations by way of dues, assessments, or similar levies were used to promote a candidate for the office of President of CUTW and that this alleged violation may have affected the outcome of the mail ballot election completed on November 30, 1984, in violation of 29 U.S.C. § 481(g). Upon investigation of the complaint, the Secretary found probable cause to believe that a violation of the Act had occurred and thus instituted this suit on April 19, 1985.
The parties originally filed cross-motions for summary judgment in January and February of 1986. On July 25, 1986, the court denied both motions for summary judgment for failure to comply with District of Connecticut Local Rule 9(c), which requires each party to file a separate statement of material facts not in dispute in conjunction with a motion for summary judgment. For several months, the parties tried without success to resolve their dispute.
In March, 1987, the parties filed renewed cross-motions for summary judgment, supported by a joint stipulation of material facts not in dispute. The Secretary of Labor asks the court to declare the defendant's November 30, 1984 election for the office of President null and void and to direct the defendant to conduct a new election for the office of President under the supervision of the Department of Labor. For the reasons set forth below, the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment is GRANTED, and the defendant's motion for summary judgment is DENIED.
Summary judgment may be granted when there are no genuine issues as to any material fact, and the moving party is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 56(c). The moving party has the burden of demonstrating the absence of any material factual issue genuinely in dispute. See American International Group, Inc. v. London American International Corp., Ltd., 664 F.2d 348, 351 (2d Cir.1981). A court must resolve ambiguities and draw reasonable inferences against the moving party. Id. This inquiry is not changed when cross-motions are before the court. "Rather, the court must evaluate each party's motion on its own merits, taking care in each instance to draw all reasonable inferences against the party whose motion is under consideration." Schwabenbauer v. Board of Education, 667 F.2d 305, 314 (2d Cir.1981).
The existence of a disputed fact will not prevent the granting of a motion for summary judgment unless the disputed fact is material. Burlington Coat Factory Warehouse Corp. v. Esprit de Corp., 769 F.2d 919, 923 (2d Cir.1985). Moreover, a party is not permitted to create his own "genuine" issue of fact simply by presenting contradictory or unsupported statements. See Celotex v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 106 S.Ct. 2548, 91 L.Ed.2d 265 (1986); S.E.C. v. Research Automation Corp., 585 F.2d 31, 33-34 (2d Cir.1978). Neither party has demonstrated the existence of any disputed facts which are material; accordingly, summary judgment is appropriate in this case.
The following are the material facts as set forth by the parties in their briefs, affidavits, exhibits, and the stipulation of material facts not in dispute filed pursuant to Local Rule 9(c). In November 1984, CUTW was an affiliated local union of the TIU, and thus was also known as Local 400 of the TIU. During November 1984, CUTW conducted its triennial election of officers by mail ballot. The ballots were mailed to the CUTW membership on November 14, 1984 and were to be returned no later than November 30, 1984. George Sherwood opposed John Shaughnessy for the office of President. At the time of the election, Shaughnessy was the incumbent President of CUTW. He had been President of CUTW for approximately 26 years. Shaughnessy was also the President of TIU and had been for over 20 years.
During the two-year period preceding the November 1984 election, the issue of possible TIU affiliation with an AFL-CIO affiliated international union was the subject of considerable debate and controversy among CUTW and other TIU members. See Stipulated Statement of Facts Not in Dispute (filed March 3, 1987) ("Stipulated Facts") at ¶ 4 (). Shaughnessy, as President of both the TIU and CUTW, was the moving force behind the effort to affiliate the TIU with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees ("AFSCME"). However, other member locals within the TIU supported affiliation with either the Communication Workers of America ("CWA") or the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers ("IBEW"). At the time of the November 1984 CUTW election, affiliation was a major, unresolved issue within the TIU. See Stipulated Facts at ¶ 11.
Both the CWA and IBEW conducted spirited campaigns to discredit the merits of TIU affiliation with AFCSME and simultaneously to muster support within the TIU for affiliation with their respective unions. Eventually, particular individuals became identified with opposing factions on the affiliation issue. See id. at ¶ 8. For example, Vincent Messina, President of the Union of Telephone Workers ("UTW"), located in New York City, was strongly opposed to TIU affiliation with AFSCME and actively supported affiliation with CWA by mailing literature to TIU members. Shaughnessy, on the other hand, was identified as the major proponent of affiliation with AFSCME. See id. ¶¶ 9-10.
During the period of November 14 to November 30, 1984, two pieces of literature were mailed to certain CUTW members. The first piece, referred to by the parties as the "Messina Letter," was drafted by UTW President Vincent Messina on November 15, 1984. See id. ¶¶ 13, 26-30. Messina wrote the letter in an effort to correct statement that Shaughnessy had made at a recent meeting with UTW members held in Syracuse, New York. See id. at ¶ 28. At one time, UTW, like CUTW, had been affiliated with TIU. Shaughnessy's alleged misstatements concerned the relationship between TIU's financial difficulties and UTW's non-payment of back TIU assessments. At the Syracuse meeting, Shaughnessy also discussed TIU's proposed affiliation with AFSCME. See id.
Messina sent a copy of the letter to Larry Cohen, a CWA organizer with offices in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut, who was involved in CWA's campaign to thwart TIU's affiliation with AFSCME. See id. at ¶ 29. CWA clerical workers used a CWA photocopier to make 10 to 15 copies of the Messina Letter. These copies were sent to other CWA organizers so that they would be aware of the general thrust of the CWA campaign to affiliate the CWA with TIU. See id. at ¶¶ 29-35.
Thereafter Cohen distributed the letter to other CWA organizers, including Stephen Early, a CWA organizer with an office in Waltham, Massachusetts. In turn, Early sent approximately 100 copies of the letter to CUTW's local officers throughout Connecticut. At least one CUTW local President, Elizabeth Balsley of CUTW Local 206, received a copy of the Messina Letter at her home and discussed the letter with several other members of her CUTW local. Early copied the Messina Letter on a CWA photocopy machine. In addition, CWA union funds were used to pay the postage for the mailing of the copies of the Messina Letter to CUTW members. Both parties have stipulated that Early mailed the Messina Letter in conjunction with CWA's campaign against CUTW and AFSCME affiliation, and not expressly for the purpose of influencing CUTW's November 1984 election. See id. at ¶¶ 14, 35-41.
The second piece of literature was a flier prepared by unnamed members of the IBEW at their headquarters in Washington, D.C (the "IBEW Flier"). The purpose of the IBEW Flier was also to undermine John Shaughnessy's efforts to have the TIU affiliate with AFSCME. See id. at ¶¶ 15-16, 23-25. IBEW printed over 50,000 copies of the flier for distribution to TIU members across the country. See id. at ¶ 24. This flier was only one of many fliers which the IBEW prepared and distributed in an effort to halt the proposed affiliation between TIU and AFSCME. See id. at ¶ 25. Approximately 6,000 copies of the flier were distributed by IBEW organizers to CUTW members during the period that the election ballots were mailed to CUTW members. See id. at ¶¶ 12, 23. IBEW funds were used to prepare and mail the IBEW Flier. See id. at ¶ 23.
Neither piece of literature specifically mentioned CUTW presidential candidate George Sherwood. Moreover, neither Sherwood nor any other CUTW executive board member solicited, encouraged, or aided either the CWA or IBEW in the distribution of their literature. Nevertheless, the court finds, in light of the undisputed facts, that no reasonable juror could conclude otherwise than that the probable impact of both pieces of literature was to discredit incumbent John Shaughnessy, the "major proponent" of TIU affiliation with AFSCME. See id. at 2, 5, 8, 10, 23; see also Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 106 S.Ct. 2505, 2512-13, 91 L.Ed.2d 202 (1986). The parties have...
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