Kerrigan Iron Works, Inc. v. Cook Truck Lines, Inc.

296 S.W.2d 379, 41 Tenn. App. 467, 38 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2499, 1956 Tenn. App. LEXIS 175
CourtCourt of Appeals of Tennessee
DecidedJune 29, 1956
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 296 S.W.2d 379 (Kerrigan Iron Works, Inc. v. Cook Truck Lines, Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of Tennessee primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Kerrigan Iron Works, Inc. v. Cook Truck Lines, Inc., 296 S.W.2d 379, 41 Tenn. App. 467, 38 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2499, 1956 Tenn. App. LEXIS 175 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1956).

Opinion

FELTS, J.

This is a suit by a shipper for an injunction to require common carriers to continue rendering their customary service to complainant, and to restrain a labor union and its officers and agents from interfering with any carrier or its employees in rendering such service.

*471 Tlie original bill was filed November 26, 1952, in the Chancery Conrt of Davidson Connty at Nashville, by complainant Kerrigan Iron Works, Inc., against Cook Truck Lines, Inc.; Hoover Motor Express Company, Inc.; Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Helpers and Taxicab Drivers, Local Union No. 327 (hereinafter referred to as Local 327); and its officers and agents, sued both as individuals and as representatives of Local 327, an unincorporated association.

Defendants Cook and Hoover were Tennessee corporations and common carriers engaged in transporting freight for hire by motor truck on the highways in this and in other states, under certificates of convenience and necessity issued by the Interstate Commerce Commission and by the Tennessee Public Service Commission. Defendant Local 327 was the union and the collective-bargaining representative of the truck driver and freight-handling employees of Cook, Hoover, and other motor truck carriers with their principal place of business in Nashville.

Complainant had two plants in Nashville where it manufactured iron and steel products. It shipped large amounts of raw materials to these plants and large quantities of its manufactured products from them. Such shipments were intra- and interstate and were customarily carried by Cook, Hoover, and other like carriers, which maintained pickup and delivery service at these plants. Complainant was largely dependent on such service for continuance of its business.

None of complainant’s employees were members of Local 327. Some of them were members of another and different union, the International Association of Bridge, *472 Structural, and Ornamental Iron Workers (hereinafter called Iron Workers), and were covered by a collective bargaining contract between complainant and Iron Workers. In March 1952, a dispute arose, Iron Workers called a strike, and placed pickets at complainant’s plants. Some weeks later most of the employees came back to work, and complainant has been operating the plants ever since, though Iron Workers has continued the picketing, which has been peaceful.

When Iron Workers put the pickets at complainant’s plants, defendants Cook and Hoover quit rendering carrier service to complainant. They refused to make pickups or deliveries at the plánts and refused to permit complainant’s employees to come to their freight yards for freight which had been consigned to complainant and accepted by them for delivery to it. They stated that the reason for their refusal was that their employees, members of Local 327, would not cross Iron Workers’ picket line or handle freight consigned to or from complainant’s plants.

The bill averred that this reason was wholly insufficient; that under the law of Tennessee defendant common carriers and their employees were bound to render service to the public without preference or discrimination; and that their conduct in refusing to render their customary service to complainant was in violation of the common law and statutes of Tennessee, T. O. A. secs. 64-422, 65-512, 65-514, 65-1523, 65-1524.

It was further charged that the officers, agents, and members of Local 327 had conspired and combined among themselves and with defendants Cook and Hoover to accomplish an unlawful purpose, to wit: refusal to perform *473 or permit performance of the legal duty upon these common carriers to render their customary service to complainant; and that this combination was in violation of the Tennessee Anti-trust law, T. C. A. sec. 69-101.

The bill further charged that defendant carriers had accepted from other common carriers freight consigned to complainant and had thereby entered into contracts to complete the carriage and deliver the freight to complainant ; and that the conduct of Local 327 and its members, in causing defendant carriers to breach such contracts, violated the statute of Tennessee declaring it unlawful for any person, by any means, to procure a breach of any lawful contract by any party thereto, T. C. A. see. 47-1706.

The bill also alleged that by reason of defendants’ unlawful conduct, complainant would suffer irreparable damages, and that there was no adequate remedy at law. The prayer was for a temporary injunction restraining defendant carriers from failing or refusing to provide their customary service to complainant, and restraining Local 327 and its officers and agents from interfering with such service; and that, on final hearing, such injunction be made permanent.

Defendants Cook and Hoover filed answers, each admitting its failure to render the service but averring that this was because its employees refused to cross the picket line or to handle freight for complainant; and that each of them had a contract with Local 327 which permitted its employees to refuse to cross another union’s picket line or to handle “unfair goods”. Hoover also filed a cross-bill asking that this provision of the contract be declared illegal and void.

*474 On December 17, 1952, defendant Local 327 and its officers and agents filed a plea to the jurisdiction of the Chancery Court. They alleged that the subject matter of this suit was governed by sections 7 and 8(b) (4) (A) and (D) of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, 29 U. S. C. A. secs. 157, 158(b) (4) (A, D.); and that the National Labor Relations Board had exclusive jurisdiction and the state court had no jurisdiction of the matter.

On January 12, 1953, after a hearing, the Chancellor entered a decree overruling this plea and granting a temporary injunction, as prayed, enjoining Cook and Hoover “from failing or refusing, while exercising the duties and privileges of a common carrier, to provide the customary carrier service to complainant * * *” and enjoining Local 327 and its officers and agents from interfering with any carrier or its employees in rendering such service.

Local 327 and its officers and agents filed an answer averring that under the contract with the carriers their employees had a right to refuse to cross a union picket line or to handle “unfair goods”; and that the relief sought by the bill would conflict with sections 7, 8, and 13 of the National Labor Relations Act, as amended, and would deprive the union and its members of their rights under the 13th and 14th Amendments to the Constitution of the United States.

By supplemental bill, 20 more motor carriers, with the business agent of Local 327 with each of them, were made defendants. Answers were filed by some and pro confessos entered against the others. Proof was taken by complainant and by cross-complainant Hoover. No proof was offered by Local 327 or its officers or agents. *475 Instead, they moved to dissolve the injunction and dismiss the suit on the ground that the court had no jurisdiction'of the subject matter, and that exclusive jurisdiction was in the National Labor Relations Board.

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Bluebook (online)
296 S.W.2d 379, 41 Tenn. App. 467, 38 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2499, 1956 Tenn. App. LEXIS 175, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/kerrigan-iron-works-inc-v-cook-truck-lines-inc-tennctapp-1956.