Puma v. Brandenburg, 69 Civ. 3832.
| Decision Date | 15 March 1971 |
| Docket Number | No. 69 Civ. 3832.,69 Civ. 3832. |
| Citation | 324 F. Supp. 536 |
| Parties | Michael PUMA, John Sheridan, Lou Gutin, Michael Sabatino and Al Capolino, Plaintiffs, v. Mortimer BRANDENBURG, Joseph Matranga, Max Drexler, Edward Drexler, Howard Goldstein, Joseph Leff, Matthew Levitt, Jack Schwartzberg and Norman Joseph, Defendants. |
| Court | U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York |
Godfrey P. Schmidt, New York City, for plaintiffs.
Graubard, Moskovitz, McGoldrick, Dannett & Horowitz, New York City, for defendants by Emanuel Dannett, Jacob Silverman, and Robert I. Gosseen, New York City, of counsel.
FINDINGS OF FACT*
1. Plaintiffs, Michael Puma, John Sheridan, Lou Gutin, Michael Sabatino and Al Capolino, at all relevant times were and still are members in good standing of Liquor Salesmen's Union Local 2 of the State of New York ("Local 2"), affiliated with Distillery, Rectifying, Wine and Allied Workers' International Union of America, AFL-CIO ("International").
2. Plaintiffs are all liquor salesmen, licensed as such by the State of New York, and employed by wholesale distributors of liquors under labor contracts negotiated by said employers and Local 2.
3. Plaintiffs duly obtained leave of this court to bring this action (see order made and entered herein on September 5, 1969).
4. Local 2 is a "labor organization" under the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act of 1959 ("LMRDA"); and, at all relevant times, defendants are and were officers, agents and representatives of Local 2.
5. At all relevant times defendant Mortimer Brandenburg ("Brandenburg") was and still is President of Local 2; and, since 1958, he has also been President of the International.
6. Since April 29, 1957, Joseph Matranga ("Matranga") was and still is Executive Vice President of Local 2; and prior to that date and since 1955 he was a member of the Executive Board or Committee ("Executive Board") of Local 2.
7. Max Drexler was, for more than 20 years prior to his retirement in 1968, the Executive Secretary of Local 2.
8. Edward Drexler (son of Max Drexler) was, since January 1964 and until his resignation in 1968, the Second Vice President of Local 2.
9. Howard Goldstein ("Goldstein") since 1955 was and still is a member of the Executive Board of Local 2; and since April 9, 1957, he has been Treasurer of Local 2.
10. Joseph Leff ("Leff"), since 1964 and until his resignation in 1968, was a member of the Executive Board of Local 2.
11. Matthew Levitt ("Levitt"), since 1955 and until his resignation in 1968, was a member of the Executive Board of Local 2.
12. Defendant Jack Schwartzberg ("Schwartzberg") was a member of the Executive Board of Local 2 from January, 1956 to January 9, 1970.
13. Defendant Norman Joseph ("Joseph") since 1936 was and still is a member of the Executive Board of Local 2.
14. At all relevant times the individuals named in Findings 5 through 13 hereof, together with Nat Fox ("Fox"), now deceased, constituted a majority of the Executive Board of Local 2.
15. During his lifetime Fox was at all relevant times the Recording Secretary and a member of the Executive Board of Local 2.
16. In addition to being President of Local 2 and President of the International, defendant Brandenburg since 1967 or 1968 was and still is Executive Business Manager of the Wholesale Wine Salesmen's Union, Local 18 ("Local 18"), affiliated with the International.
17. (a) The general powers and duties of the officers, agents and representatives of Local 2, for the period beginning some time prior to 1956 and ending November, 1959, were set forth in the Constitution of Local 2 (Plaintiffs' Exhibit A-1; "Local 2's Original Constitution"); and, for the period beginning November, 1959 and continuing to date, were set forth in the current Constitution of Local 2 (Plaintiffs' Exhibit A-2;1 "Local 2's Current Constitution").
(b) The general powers and duties of the officers, agents and representatives of Local 2 are to some extent also governed, for the period prior to 1956 and ending in 1960, by the Constitution of the International (Plaintiff's Exhibit B-1; "International's Original Constitution"); and, for the period beginning in 1960 and continuing to date, by the International's Current Constitution (Plaintiff's Exhibit B-2; "International's Current Constitution").
18. Section 5 of Article XV of Local 2's Original Constitution provides:
"They members of the Executive Board shall have full right and power to fix compensation and award for services or employment rendered the Union and to fix terms and salaries of officers."2
19. Section 6 of Article XV of Local 2's Original Constitution provides:
"In any event, if it shall be impossible or not feasible to gather the memberships of the Union together expeditiously enough to act upon any situation requiring immediacy of action, it shall have full power to do any act or series of acts in behalf of the Union with the same force and effect as if it acted upon in like manner by the Union sitting as a whole in meeting."3
20. Article XXVIII of Local 2's Original Constitution, entitled "Meetings," provides as follows:
21. Section 1 of Article XXXV of Local 2's Original Constitution and Section 1 of Article XXI of Local 2's Current Constitution provide as follows:
22. Section 2 of Article XX of Local 2's Current Constitution provides:
23. Section 2(d) of Article III of the International's Original Constitution provides:
"(d) Any local union accepting and holding a charter from this International and becoming an affiliate in membership, does so only upon condition that it recognizes the supreme jurisdiction of the International Union and accepts the Constitution and By-Laws of this International Union as its fundamental law, reserving to itself no rights of self-government which are inconsistent or in violation of the Constitution and By-Laws of the International Union."4
24. Section 1 of Article IV of the International's Original Constitution provides:
**
25. Section 3 of Article IX of the International's Original Constitution and Section 4 of Article XI of the International's Current Constitution provide in part as follows:
26. Section 7 of Article X of the International's Original Constitution and of Article XII of the International's Current Constitution provides:
...
To continue reading
Request your trial
-
Rochester Corporation v. Rochester, 15408.
...is to be construed liberally in favor of the employee. See Dierks v. Thompson, supra, 295 F.Supp. at p. 1278. 5 Puma v. Brandenburg (D.C.N.Y.1971) 324 F.Supp. 536, 544; Cantor v. Berkshire Life Ins. Co., supra, 171 N.E.2d 518, 522. In the latter case, the Court "Therefore, whether a retirem......
-
Morrissey v. Curran
...Workers v. Boyle, 78 Lab.Cas. (CCH) # 11,183, 20,051 n.5 (D.D.C.1975) (judicial scrutiny of authorized expenditure); Puma v. Brandenburg, 324 F.Supp. 536, 544 (S.D.N.Y.1971) (same); Nelson v. Johnson, 212 F.Supp. 233, 257-59 (D.Minn.1962), aff'd, 325 F.2d 646 (8th Cir. 1963) (same); Highway......
-
Brink v. DaLesio
...a personal benefit on the union official, see, e. g., Morrissey v. Curran, 482 F.Supp. 31, 38 (S.D.N.Y.1979); and Puma v. Brandenburg, 324 F.Supp. 536, 544 (S.D.N.Y.1971); or where it confers no benefit on the union, cf. United States v. Ladmer, 429 F.Supp. 1231, 1240 (E.D.N.Y.1977). Leslie......
-
Morrissey v. Curran, 73 Civ. 204 (WCC).
...the union officials are exposed to the possibility of imprisonment for terms of up to five years on each count. In Puma v. Brandenburg, 324 F.Supp. 536, 544 (S.D.N.Y.1971), notwithstanding the fact that the Officers' Pension Plan under challenge had been ratified by the union membership, Ju......