LaBarbera v. Audax Construction Corp.

971 F. Supp. 2d 273, 2013 WL 5295493, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 136780
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. New York
DecidedJanuary 10, 2013
DocketNo. 02-cv-582 (SLT)(GRB)
StatusPublished
Cited by12 cases

This text of 971 F. Supp. 2d 273 (LaBarbera v. Audax Construction Corp.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
LaBarbera v. Audax Construction Corp., 971 F. Supp. 2d 273, 2013 WL 5295493, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 136780 (E.D.N.Y. 2013).

Opinion

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

TOWNES, District Judge:

Gary LaBarbera and Theodore King (“Plaintiffs”), as trustees and fiduciaries of the Local 282 Welfare, Pension, Annuity, Job Training and the Vacation and Sick Leave Trust Funds (the “Funds”), brought suit pursuant to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”), as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 1132, and the Labor Management Relations Act (“LMRA”), as amended, 29 U.S.C. § 185, against defendant, Audax Construction Corp. (“Audax”), a signatory to a collective bargaining agreement with Local 282 of the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters, for alleged unpaid contributions to the Funds on behalf of third-party employees.1 Plaintiffs successfully moved for summary judgment on those issues as to Audax’s liability and, on May 29, 2009, a partial judgment (the “Partial Judgment”) was entered against Audax.

Plaintiffs have now moved pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 69, (“Rule 69”), invoking New York Civil Procedure Law (“CPLR”) §§ 5225, 5227, and New York Debtor and Creditor Law (“DCL”) §§ 273, 273-a, and 278, in which they essentially seek a turnover order to set aside fraudulent conveyances and collect the unsatisfied judgment from Audax’s shareholders, Nicholas Nubile, Nunzio Montoni, and Victor DiRe (collectively, the “Audax Shareholders”). Plaintiffs also seek to amend/supplement their complaint to add the Audax Shareholders as parties and assert individual state law claims against them as well as to substitute two current trustees in lieu of Plaintiffs, as they are no longer trustees. In response, Audax asserts that this court lacks subject matter jurisdiction to entertain Plaintiffs fraudulent conveyance claims as they seek to shift liability to the Audax Shareholders. Audax also opposes Plaintiffs’ motion to amend/supplement to the extent it seeks to name the Audax Shareholders as additional defendants. Although not parties to the action, the Audax Shareholders also submitted letters to the court asserting that the court lacks personal jurisdiction over them. For the reasons that follow, the court denies Plaintiffs’ motion to the extent it seeks enforcement of the Partial Judgment and grants their motion to the extent it seeks to amend/supplement the complaint, but only as to Plaintiffs’ request to replace the named trustees.

I. Background Relevant to the Instant Motions

Plaintiffs commenced this lawsuit in January of 2002, at which time Audax was not a named defendant. In April of 2004, [277]*277Plaintiffs amended their complaint to include Audax as a defendant and alleged, in part, that Audax and the original defendants integrated their operations in an ongoing scheme to defraud the Funds by underpaying their joint and/or individual contractual obligations to contribute to the Funds. (Amended Complaint, Introduction.) At all times relevant to this action, Audax was controlled by its sole shareholders, the Audax Shareholders.

Prior to Plaintiffs’ filing of the amended complaint, Audax was a solvent entity. Upon being named as a defendant in April of 2004, however, Plaintiffs allege that the Audax Shareholders took actions that rendered Audax insolvent to prevent it from being able to satisfy any potential judgment against it. In this regard, Plaintiffs note that at the end of the 2004 tax year, Audax reported more than $2.5 million in total assets and more than $2.1 million in retained earnings, while it distributed approximately $185,000 to the Audax Shareholders (other than dividend distributions), who each received approximately $62,000. However, by the end of the 2005 tax year, Audax reported little more than $100,000 in total assets and $870,000 in retained earnings, while it distributed approximately $2.9 million to the Audax Shareholders (other than dividends), who each received about $976,000. Then, by the end of the 2006 tax year — on Audax’s final return— Audax reported zero in total assets and $270,000 in retained earnings, while it distributed approximately $250,000 to the Au-dax Shareholders (other than dividends), who each received about $80,000. Plaintiffs allege that these transfers, which total approximately $8 million dollars to each Audax Shareholder, fraudulently stripped Audax of its assets, thereby rendering it judgment proof.

On September 5, 2007, 2007 WL 2582103, the court, inter alia, granted Plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment, finding Audax liable for underpayments to the Funds on behalf of Ferrara Equipment, Ine.’s employees. (Document No. 99). In addition, due to outstanding questions regarding the specifics of Audax’s contribution obligations, the court ordered Audax to submit to an audit, upon the completion of which, the court would determine to what damages, interest, and attorney’s fees Plaintiffs were entitled. (Id. at 25-26.) On May 29, 2009, the Partial Judgment was entered against Audax, ordering it to make the following payments to Plaintiffs: (1) $538,643.18 in delinquent contributions, (2) $514,874.23 in interest through June 30, 2008, (3) interest from July 1, 2008, until the date of payment on $406,017.45 at a rate of 16% per annum and on $132,625.73 at a rate of 18% per annum, (4) liquidated damages in an amount equal to the total interest due, (5) audit costs of $14,244.31, and (6) attorney’s fees of $93,051.50. (Document No. 116.) Audax was also ordered to submit the books and records of its affiliated companies for audit and, upon the completion of the audit, the court would determine to what damages and other sums, if any, Plaintiffs were entitled. (Id.) The Partial Judgment remains unsatisfied and the affiliated entities’ books and records have not been submitted to an audit.2

[278]*278II. Procedural Rules

Plaintiffs bring this action to enforce the Partial Judgment against the Audax Shareholders pursuant to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 69. New York state rules of procedure govern such enforcement actions. See Fed.R.Civ.P. 69(a)(1) (“[a] money judgment is enforced by a writ of execution,” the procedure for which “must accord with the procedure of the state where the court is located.”). CPLR § 5225(b) provides, in relevant part,

Upon a special proceeding commenced by the judgment creditor, against a person in possession or custody of money ... in which the judgment creditor has an interest, or against a person who is a transferee of money ... from the judgment debtor, where it is shown that the judgment debtor is entitled to the possession of such property or that the judgment creditor’s rights to the property are superior to those of the transferee, the court shall require the person to pay the money or so much of it as sufficient to satisfy the judgment, to the judgment creditor.... Notice of the proceeding shall also be served upon the judgment debtor in the same manner as a summons or by registered or certified mail.

CPLR § 5227 similarly provides:

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971 F. Supp. 2d 273, 2013 WL 5295493, 2013 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 136780, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/labarbera-v-audax-construction-corp-nyed-2013.