Herman v. Local 305, National Postal Mail Handlers Union

44 F. Supp. 2d 771, 162 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2045, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5055, 1999 WL 219763
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Virginia
DecidedApril 8, 1999
DocketCiv.A. 3:98CV608
StatusPublished
Cited by2 cases

This text of 44 F. Supp. 2d 771 (Herman v. Local 305, National Postal Mail Handlers Union) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Virginia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Herman v. Local 305, National Postal Mail Handlers Union, 44 F. Supp. 2d 771, 162 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2045, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5055, 1999 WL 219763 (E.D. Va. 1999).

Opinion

*773 MEMORANDUM OPINION

PAYNE, District Judge.

The Secretary of Labor, Alexis M. Herman, (the “Secretary”) filed this action against the defendant union (the “Union”) challenging the Union’s conduct of an election for the office of President. On the basis of a complaint filed by the losing candidate, the Secretary has alleged that the Union violated several sections of the Labor Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (“LMRDA”) of 1959, as amended, 29 U.S.C. §§ 401-483. 1 The Secretary asks that the election for the office of President be declared null and vmd and that the Union be required to conduct a new election for that office under the supervision of the Secretary.

The Union has moved to dismiss this action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction pursuant to Fed.R.Civ.P. 12(b)(1). The premise of the Union’s motion is that the member’s complaint was not timely filed with the Secretary. The parties are in agreement that, if the member’s complaint was not timely filed with the Secretary, the Court lacks subject matter jurisdiction. For the reasons which follow, the Union’s motion is GRANTED.

STATEMENT OF FACTS

On January 17, 1998, the Union held its regularly scheduled election for officers. The certified results of the election were dated January 3.0, 1998, and they were posted at several locations during the first week of February. Ronald Jones won the election for President by a margin of more than 2-to-l votes. By letter dated February 16, 1998, Renee Holiday, a Union member in good standing, who finished a distant second to Jones in the balloting, filed a protest of the election with the Union’s National President, William Quinn. The National President denied Holiday’s protest by letter dated May 13,1998. Holiday chose not to appeal this decision, but on June 14, 1998, a date one month and one day after her protest was denied, Holiday filed by facsimile with the Secretary a complaint challenging the' conduct of the election and seeking review of the results by the Secretary in accordance with the LMRDA.

THE APPLICABLE STANDARD

A motion under Rule 12(b)(1) is an attack upon the allegations in the complaint intended to establish subject matter jurisdiction. The party asserting jurisdiction, in this case the Secretary, has the burden to demonstrate the existence of subject matter jurisdiction. Williams v. United States, 50 F.3d 299, 304 (4th Cir.1995). “Unlike the procedure in a 12(b)(6) motion where there is a presumption reserving the truth finding role to the ultimate fact finder, the court in a 12(b)(1) hearing weighs the evidence to determine its jurisdiction.” Adams v. Bain, 697 F.2d 1213, 1219 (4th Cir.1982). Thus, the allegations of jurisdiction in the complaint are not accorded the presumption of correctness which they would otherwise receive under Rule 12(b)(6) See Virginia v. United States, 926 F.Supp. 537, 541 (E.D.Va.1995). Moreover, because a Rule 12(b)(1) motion challenges the existence of the Court’s subject matter jurisdiction, the Court “may look beyond the jurisdictional allegations of the complaint and view whatever evidence has been submitted on the issue to determine whether in fact subject matter jurisdiction exists.” Virginia, 926 F.Supp. at 540-41 (citing Capitol Leasing Co. v. FDIC, 999 F.2d 188, 191 (7th Cir.1993)); Bain, 697 F.2d at 1219; Ocean Breeze Festival Park, Inc. v. Reich, 853 F.Supp. 906, 911 (E.D.Va.1994).

*774 The parties do not dispute that filing a timely complaint with the Secretary is a jurisdictional prerequisite that must be satisfied before the Secretary may file a complaint under the LMRDA in District Court. Reich v. Local 399, Int’l Bro. of Elec. Workers, 3 F.3d 184, 188 (7th Cir.1993). Failure to satisfy that jurisdictional prerequisite necessitates dismissal. Hodgson v. United Steelworkers of America, 459 F.2d 348, 350 (3d Cir.1972); Reich v. Local 30, Int’l Bro. of Teamsters, 6 F.3d 978, 982 (3d Cir.1993). The sole issue for decision here is whether the complaint which Holiday sent to the Secretary on June 14, 1998 was timely. If not, the Union’s motion must be granted.

DISCUSSION

A. The Union’s Procedures

Challenges to the conduct of local Union elections must be made, in the first instance, pursuant to the provisions for such challenges found in the Union’s constitution. See 29 U.S.C. § 411(a)(4); see also Def. M. to Dismiss at Exh. A, Art. VI. Article VI, Section 6 of the Union’s constitution provides that “[pjrotests regarding the conduct of elections shall be filed with the National President by forwarding a copy of such protests to the National President within fifteen (15) days after the posting of the results of the election.” Def. M. to Dismiss at Exh A, Art VI § 6(1). “Decisions of the National President regarding such protests are appeal-able to the National Executive Board by forwarding a copy thereof to the National Secretary-Treasurer within fifteen (15) days from the receipt of the National President’s decision.” Id. at § 6(2).

The National President’s decision was issued by letter dated May 13, 1998. The record does not show when Holiday actually received it, but counsel for the Secretary represents that Holiday received it on May 14,1998. Trans.Hrg. Feb. 10,1999 at 21:1-5. Under Article VI, § 6(2), Holiday could have appealed the National President’s decision up to and including May 29, 1998, however, she elected not to file an appeal.

B. The Applicable Statute

The Union’s internal procedures for review of election challenges are not the only vehicle by which a union member may challenge the conduct of an election. Under certain circumstances, the LMRDA allows a member of a union to secure review of an election by the Secretary. In relevant part, the LMRDA provides:

(a) Filing of complaint; presumption of validity in challenged election
A member of a labor organization—
(1) who has exhausted the remedies available under the constitution and bylaws of such organization and of any parent body, or,

Free access — add to your briefcase to read the full text and ask questions with AI

Related

Thomas Perez v. Postal Police Officers Association
736 F.3d 736 (Sixth Circuit, 2013)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
44 F. Supp. 2d 771, 162 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2045, 1999 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 5055, 1999 WL 219763, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/herman-v-local-305-national-postal-mail-handlers-union-vaed-1999.