Clark v. Fitzgerald

197 Misc. 355, 93 N.Y.S.2d 768, 25 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2115, 1949 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2990
CourtNew York Supreme Court
DecidedDecember 5, 1949
StatusPublished
Cited by16 cases

This text of 197 Misc. 355 (Clark v. Fitzgerald) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering New York Supreme Court primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Clark v. Fitzgerald, 197 Misc. 355, 93 N.Y.S.2d 768, 25 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2115, 1949 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2990 (N.Y. Super. Ct. 1949).

Opinion

Eder, J.

Motion for injunction is denied. The organization known as United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America (hereinafter United Electrical and U.E.) is an unincorporated, voluntary association stated to be an international [356]*356industrial union in the electrical, radio and machine manufacturing industry.

It is composed of a large number of local unions throughout the United States. It issues charters to locals and it issued a charter to the organization known as “ Local 450 U.E.” (hereafter Local 450 or Local). Local 450 is also an unincorporated, voluntary association, and it has functioned as a chartered local of United Electrical.

United Electrical and Local 450 each have a constitution and by-laws by which they are governed. The charter issued to Local 450 contains the following provision: “It is hereby agreed in the acceptance of this charter that the aforesaid (local) union shall conform to the constitution, rules and regulations of the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America.”

There is contained in the constitution of United Electrical, in section 0, of article 18 the following provision, so far as here relevant: “Any disbandment, dissolution, secession or disaffiliation of any local shall be invalid and null and void if seven or more members indicate their desire to retain the local charter.”

In accepting the charter Local 450 became subject to and bound by the afore-mentioned provision that it would conform to the constitution of United Electrical. United Electrical was heretofore affiliated with the organization known as the Congress of Industrial Organizations (hereafter C.I.O.), and the fact of its affiliation with C.I.O. is announced in the heading of its printed booklet which contains the constitution and by-laws of the U.E. This affiliation of U.E. with C.I.O. ended on November 2, 1949, when United Electrical was expelled from the C.I.O.

Section 1 of article I of the constitution of Local 450 entitled “Name” provides that it shall be known as “Local 450, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America.”

Section 1 of article II thereof, entitled “ Affiliation ”, reads as follows: ‘ ‘ Local 450 shall be affiliated with the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America, C.I.O., with District 4, United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America C.I.O., and with such other bodies as the membership may determine.” (Emphasis mine.)

Following the expulsion of Unite/1 Electrical from the C.I.O., meetings of the members of Local 450 were held to discuss the question of continued affiliation with the C.I.O., and as to what course of action should be taken toward accomplishing such [357]*357continued affiliation, it being asserted that the continued association with the C.LO. was imperative to secure and assure protection to the members in their field of employment, and that disaffiliation with the C.I.O. could only result in damage to the good and welfare of the membership of Local 450. A motion was proposed and adopted by an overwhelming vote of the members to continue affiliation with the C.I.O.

It is alleged in the moving papers that as a consequence of these meetings and the action taken thereat a recommendation was made by defendant Brady and by other defendants that the title, property, funds and assets of Local 450 be transferred to a committee of seven, consisting of five trustees and two officers, to wit, defendants Fitzgerald and Brady, and that the committee of seven be empowered and authorized to take such steps with respect thereto as they might deem fit, and that the defendants further announced that the executive board was seeking affiliation with some other union and that the purpose of establishing a committee of seven was to conceal the property of Local 450 and to make it available for the use and benefit of such other union, and to deprive Local 450 and its membership thereof, and that the defendant Brady and others of the defendants then caused motions to the foregoing effect to be introduced and passed at such meetings over the opposition of more than seven members of Local 450, and that the afore-mentioned acts on the part of the defendants and members of the executive board of Local 450 were in violation of the provisions of the constitution of United Electrical and the by-laws of the Local.

Injunctive relief is sought to restrain the defendants from committing and continuing the acts complained of and alleged to be illegal. All the alleged illegal acts charged to defendants are denied by them.

In the opposing papers it is asserted that this action arises from the attempt of the nine plaintiffs herein to harass, by improper action, the entire membership of Local 450 (4,200 members) in its fight against communist control of the union and in its fight to support the policies of the C.I.O. against Communist party interference in the affairs of the union, and that it is also intended by this action to prevent the membership from exercising their right under the Local’s constitution to freely choose an affiliation with an organization in the American labor movement that is not under communist control.

In brief, as I apprehend it, it is the contention in opposition to this motion that the expulsion of the United Electrical by [358]*358the C.I.O. removed any restriction of Local 450 and its members to associate and affiliate with the C.I.O. or with such other bodies as the membership may determine, and that the action of the members taken at the mentioned meetings was legal and valid and hence plaintiffs are not entitled to the injunctive relief sought.

If this contention is sound, it must follow that the injunction must be denied.

The principal and fundamental question, then, is whether, in view of the peculiar situation which has arisen by reason of the expulsion of United Electrical from the C.I.O., and resulting in the loss of its affiliation with the latter, the compact between United Electrical and Local 450 has terminated and has rendered nugatory section 0 of article 18 of the U.E. constitution, quoted supra.

To resolve this basic question section 0 of article 18 must be viewed in the light of the situation preceding the entry of Local 450 into membership in the U. E.

It appears from the opposing papers that in its organizing campaigns preceding the formation of specific local unions, including Local 450, United Electrical advertised its affiliation with the C.I.O., the strength which it held by virtue of its C.I.O. affiliation, its ability to aid members and prospective members by drawing upon the money, personnel, experience and prestige with the C.I.O.; that at the time Local 450 became affiliated with U.E., the international union was then an affiliate with C.I.O.j that the organization with which Local 450 became affiliated and from which it accepted a charter, was U.E., C.I.O.

The constitution of Local 450 provides in section 1 of article II that Local 450 shall be affiliated with United Electrical C.I.O., and with District 4, United Electrical C.I.O. and with such other bodies as the membership may determine.

It is thus clear that the membership of Local 450 has considered affiliation with C.I.O. as an essential relationship and prerequisite to protect its welfare and working conditions, and it is alleged that it would never have affiliated Avith U.E. were it not for U.E.’s affiliation Avith the C.I.O.

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Bluebook (online)
197 Misc. 355, 93 N.Y.S.2d 768, 25 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2115, 1949 N.Y. Misc. LEXIS 2990, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/clark-v-fitzgerald-nysupct-1949.