Board of Trustees ex rel. Galton v. Columbia Wire & Iron Works, Inc.

233 F. Supp. 3d 873, 2017 WL 522829, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17758
CourtDistrict Court, D. Oregon
DecidedFebruary 8, 2017
DocketCase No. 3:15-cv-1301-SI
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 233 F. Supp. 3d 873 (Board of Trustees ex rel. Galton v. Columbia Wire & Iron Works, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. Oregon primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Board of Trustees ex rel. Galton v. Columbia Wire & Iron Works, Inc., 233 F. Supp. 3d 873, 2017 WL 522829, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17758 (D. Or. 2017).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER

Michael H. Simon, District Judge.

Plaintiff Board of Trustees of the Employers-Shopmen’s Local 516 Pension Trust (the “Fund”) brings claims under Oregon common law and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”), 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq., against Defendants Columbia Wire & Iron Works, Inc. (“CWTW”); Columbia Steel Services, Inc. (“CSSI”); Columbia Steel Services, Inc. dba Columbia Wire & Iron Works (“CSSI dba CWTW”); Columbia Steel Solutions, Inc. (“Solutions”); and Robert and Andrew Park (collectively, the “Parks”) (collectively,, “Defendants”);1 The Fund alleges that CWTW incurred more than $2 million in withdrawal liability when it withdrew from the Fund and seeks to recover CWIW’s withdrawal liability from CWTW, CWIW’s former owners (the Parks), and from other corporations owned by the Parks. Before the Court is Defendants’ motion to dismiss the First Amended ’Complaint. For the reasons that follow, the motion to dismiss is granted in part and denied in part. .

STANDARDS

A motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim may be granted only when there is no cognizable legal theory to support the clairii or when the complaint lacks sufficient factual allegations to state a facially plausible claim for relief. Shroyer v. New Cingular Wireless Servs., Inc., 622 F.3d 1035, 1041 (9th Cir. 2010). In evaluating the sufficiency of a complaint’s factual allegations, the court must accept as true all well-pleaded material facts alleged in the complaint and construe them in the light most favorable to the non-moving party. Wilson v. Hewlett-Packard Co., 668 F.3d 1136, 1140 (9th Cir. 2012); Daniels-Hall v. Nat’l Educ. Ass’n, 629 F.3d 992, 998 (9th Cir. 2010). To be entitled to a presumption of truth, allegations in a complaint “may not simply recite the elements of a-cause of action, but must contain sufficient allegations of underlying facts to give fair notice and to enable the opposing party to defend itself effectively.” Starr v. Baca, 652 F.3d 1202, 1216 (9th Cir. 2011). All reasonable inferences from the factual allegations must be drawn in favor of the plaintiff. Newcal Indus. v. Ikon Office Solution, 513 F.3d 1038, 1043 n.2 (9th Cir. 2008). The court need not, however, credit the plaintiffs legal conclusions that are couched as factual allegations. Ashcroft v. Iqbal, 556 U.S. 662, 678-79, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009).

A complaint must contain sufficient factual allegations to “plausibly suggest an entitlement to relief, such that it is. not unfair to require the opposing party to be subjected to the expense of discovery and continued litigation.” Starr, 652 F.3d at 1216. “A claim has facial plausibility when the plaintiff pleads factual content that allows the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.” Iqbal, 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937 (citing Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 556, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007)).

[879]*879BACKGROUND2

Until it ceased operations in 2012, CWIW was a corporation owned by the Parks and others.3 CWIW had collective bargaining agreements (collectively, the “CBA”) with the Ironworkers-Shopmen’s Local 516, International Association of Bridge, Structural, Ornamental and Reinforcing Iron Workers. The CBA allegedly covered all of CWIW’s production and maintenance employees engaged in the fabrication of iron, steel, metal, and other products, The CBA also required CWIW to contribute regularly to a pension fund (the Fund) on behalf of CWIW’s employees. CWIW withdrew from the Fund in 2012 when it ceased all business operations. As a result of its withdrawal, CWIW allegedly incurred more than $2 million in withdrawal liability to the Fund.

In this suit, the Fund seeks to recover the alleged withdrawal liability from Defendants, and primarily CWIW. Because CWIW, however, is no longer in business and may be unable to pay the withdrawal liability, the Fund also seeks to recover CWIW’s withdrawal liability from the Parks and other corporations owned by the Parks, Defendants CSSI, CSSI dba CWIW, and Solutions. The Fund alleges that despite CWIW’s cessation of business operations in 2012, the Parks have continued CWIW’s steel fabrication business as a non-union operation through CSSI, CSSI dba CWIW, and Solutions. The Fund further alleges that Defendants fraudulently concealed from the Fund the fact that they were continuing their steel fabrication business in order to avoid payment of CWIW’s withdrawal liability.

The Fund brings five claims under ERISA and the common law. First, the Fund claims that CWIW has failed to pay withdrawal liability. 29 U.S.C. §§ 1145, 1451(b). Second, the Fund claims that CSSI, CSSI dba CWIW, and Solutions are liable for CWIW’s withdrawal liability because they are in the same controlled group as CWIW. 29 U.S.C. § 1401(f)(3)(B). In the third and fourth claims, the Fund claims that CSSI, CSSI dba CWIW, and Solutions are liable for the withdrawal liability under the common law alter ego and successor liability doctrines, respectively. Fifth, the Fund seeks to hold Robert and Andrew Park liable under the doctrine of “piercing the corporate veil.” ■

DISCUSSION

Defendants move to dismiss Claim Two against Solutions and Claims Three, Four, and Five against all Defendants.4 The Fund has agreed voluntarily to dismiss Claim Two against Solutions. Accordingly, remaining before the Court is Defendants’ motion to dismiss Claims Three through Five.

A. Claim Three: Alter Ego Liability

Defendants argue that Claim Three should be dismissed against CSSI and Solutions for three reasons. First, Defendants argue in their reply that the alter ego doctrine does not apply to suits attempting to collect withdrawal liability after the enactment of the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980 (MPPAA), 29 U.S.C. § 1381 et seq. In 2010, the Ninth Circuit declined to decide “whether [29 U.S.C.] § 1392(c) is intended [880]*880to be the sole route of redress for evading or avoiding withdrawal liability” or whether the alter ego doctrine is still available despite enactment of the MPPAA. Resilient Floor Covering Pension Fund v. M & M Installation, Inc., 630 F.3d 848, 852 (9th Cir. 2010). The Ninth Circuit instructed the district court on remand to decide the issue. Id.

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233 F. Supp. 3d 873, 2017 WL 522829, 2017 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 17758, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/board-of-trustees-ex-rel-galton-v-columbia-wire-iron-works-inc-ord-2017.