Mason Tenders District Council Welfare Fund v. M & M Contracting & Consulting

193 F.R.D. 112, 45 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 1263, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 205
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedJanuary 13, 2000
DocketNo. 98 CIV 5056 RLC
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 193 F.R.D. 112 (Mason Tenders District Council Welfare Fund v. M & M Contracting & Consulting) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Mason Tenders District Council Welfare Fund v. M & M Contracting & Consulting, 193 F.R.D. 112, 45 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 1263, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 205 (S.D.N.Y. 2000).

Opinion

OPINION

ROBERT L. CARTER, District Judge.

BACKGROUND

Mason Tenders District Council Welfare Fund, Pension Fund, and Annuity Fund; Mason Tenders Training Fund; New York State Laborers — Employers Cooperation and Education Trust Fund; New York Laborers’ Health and Safety Trust Fund (collectively “plaintiff Funds”); Building Contractors’ Association Industry Advancement Program; John J. Virga, Director of the plaintiff Funds; and Anthony Silveri, Business Manager of the Mason Tenders District Council of Greater New York (“Union”) brought the instant action, pursuant to §§ 502(a)(3) and 515 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”), 29 U.S.C. §§ 1132(a)(3) & 1145, and § 301 of the Labor Management Act of 1947, 29 U.S.C. § 185 (“the Taft Hartley Act”), for equitable and injunctive relief under ERISA, and for breach of contract. Plaintiffs brought suit to compel the defendants to perform them statutory and contractual obligation to pay monetary contributions and/or make reports to the plaintiff Funds, and to compel the defendants to remit dues checkoffs and New York Laborers’ Political Action Committee contributions (“NYLPAC contributions”) that were deducted from the wages of employees, as per written employee authorizations directing said payments to the Union.

The Defendants: M & M Contracting & Consulting and M & M Consulting & Contracting, Inc., d/b/a M & M Contracting & Cohsulting (“defendant company” collectively) are for-profit organizations that are doing business in the City and State of New York. The organizations are also “employers,” as defined by §§ 3(5) and 515 of ERISA, 29 U.S.C. §§ 1002(5) & 1145. Defendants also are “employers in an industry affecting commerce,” as defined by § 301 of the TaftHartley Act, 29 U.S.C. § 185. Michael T. Moscato, Jr., president of the company, has authority over the payment of the required contributions and over the submission of the required reports to the plaintiff Funds; he also exercises authority over payments, deductions, and remittances of dues checkoffs and NYLPAC contributions to the Union. As such, Moscato also is an employer within the meaning of §§ 3(5) and 515 of ERISA, and is an employer within the meaning of § 301 of the Tafb-Hartley Act, 29 U.S.C. § 185. See Aff. of Lawrence Kravitz, Esq. in Opp. to Motion1 (“Kravitz Aff.”).

On April 24, 1998, the defendant company was notified that it had failed to remit dues checkoffs and NYLPAC contributions to the Union for the period between June 25, 1997, through November 30, 1997; immediate payment of all delinquencies was demanded. Ex. A, Kravitz Aff. On May 12, 1998, the defendant company was notified that it had failed to remit dues checkoffs owed to the Union for the period between June 25, 1997, through November 30,1997. Full and immediate payment of all dues checkoffs was demanded. Ex. B, Kravitz Aff. On June 4, 1998, the defendant company was notified that it had failed to pay contractually-due fringe benefit contributions owed to the plaintiff Funds for the period between June 25, 1997, and November 30, 1997. Immediate payment of all fringe benefits contribu[114]*114tions was demanded. Ex. C, Kravitz Aff. The defendant company did not respond to these notices and demands, and did not cure the delinquencies. Plaintiffs therefore instituted the instant action in this court on July 16,1998. Kravitz Aff. at 8.

On July 21, 1998, Timothy M. Botti, a licensed process server, served the defendant company with the summons arid complaint of this action at the company’s place of business: 159 Mallory Avenue, Jersey City, New Jersey. Ex. D, Kravitz Aff. Botti also served a copy of the summons and complaint on Moscato by personally delivering the documents to Tom Rey, a man who identified himself to the process server as an agent authorized by appointment to receive service at that address. Ex. E, Kravitz Aff. On July 22, 1998, Botti served another copy of the summons and complaint on Moscato by first class mail; the documents were addressed to Michael T. Moscato, Jr., 159 Mallory Avenue, Jersey City, New Jersey, and were placed in a postpaid envelope marked personal and confidential. Id. Proof of service was filed with the court on July 29,1998. Kravitz Aff. at 8.

Moscato and the defendant company did not file an answer to the complaint and on August 21, 1998, the plaintiffs moved for an order granting judgment against the defendants by default. Id. Plaintiffs mailed copies of their motion for default to defendants at 159 Mallory Avenue, Jersey City, New Jersey. Ex. F, Kravitz Aff. No papers in opposition to the motion were filed and on September 23, 1998, a default judgment was entered which required defendants to pay the plaintiff Funds $ 37,656.76. The payment provided by the default judgment covered the amounts the defendant company owed in delinquency to the plaintiff Funds, statutory damages, interest, costs and attorneys’ fees; it also included a $2,825.10 payment to the plaintiff Union for the amount in delinquency to the Union and for interest. Ex. G, Kravitz Aff.

On September 23, 1999, defendants moved to vacate the default judgment pursuant to Rules 60(b)(1) and (6), F.R. Civ. P., as to all defendants, claiming that their inaction constituted excusable neglect and that they had a meritorious defense. Defendants also moved pursuant to Rule 60(b)(4), F.R. Civ. P., to vacate the default judgment as to Moscato, on the ground that the judgment was void because the court issuing the judgment lacked personal jurisdiction over Moscato. Aff. of Michael Strauss, Esq. in Support of Motion.2

In support of their motion to vacate the default judgment, defendants assert that Moscato delivered the summons and complaint in this action to defendants’ former counsel, Kimberly Hintze, Esq., and was informed that Hintze would file a timely answer and defend the action on the merits. However, Hintze failed to file an answer, and default judgment was entered against defendants. Defendants claimed that they only learned of the events leading to the default judgment in June, 1999. Defendants further contend that the plaintiffs are not entitled to the fringe benefit contributions and dues payments they claim they are owed because the defendants paid these monies to another union for defendants’ employees who were members of that union. Aff. of Moscato, Jr.

DETERMINATION

I.

Rule 55(c), F.R. Civ. P., provides that a default judgment may be set aside under Rule 60(b), F.R. Civ. P. on several grounds: under Rule 60(b)(1), for “mistake, inadvertence, surprise or excusable neglect,” under Rule 60(b)(4), when “the judgment is void,” and under Rule 60(b)(6) for “any other reason justifying relief from the operation of the judgment.”

The court determines whether a default judgment should be set aside pursuant to Rules 60(b)(1) and (6), by assessing whether (1) the defendant’s default was willful; (2) whether the defendant has a meritorious defense; and (3) the level of prejudice that the [115]

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
193 F.R.D. 112, 45 Fed. R. Serv. 3d 1263, 2000 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 205, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/mason-tenders-district-council-welfare-fund-v-m-m-contracting-nysd-2000.