Moll v. International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers

911 F. Supp. 269, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 616, 1996 WL 30463
CourtDistrict Court, E.D. Michigan
DecidedJanuary 23, 1996
DocketNo. 95-CV-72392-DT
StatusPublished
Cited by1 cases

This text of 911 F. Supp. 269 (Moll v. International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, E.D. Michigan primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Moll v. International Union, United Automobile, Aerospace & Agricultural Implement Workers, 911 F. Supp. 269, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 616, 1996 WL 30463 (E.D. Mich. 1996).

Opinion

OPINION AND ORDER GRANTING PLAINTIFF’S MOTION TO REMAND AND REMANDING THIS ACTION TO THE WAYNE COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT

DUGGAN, District Judge.

Plaintiff originally filed this action in the Wayne County Circuit Court contending that she was wrongfully terminated from her employment with defendant UAW. Defendants removed this case to this Court on June 14, 1995 asserting federal question jurisdiction. Presently before this Court is plaintiffs motion to remand this case to the Wayne County Circuit Court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1447(c). That section provides, in relevant part, that

[i]f at any time before final judgment it appears that the district court lacks subject matter jurisdiction, the case shall be remanded.

28 U.S.C. § 1447(c).

In support of its removal and in opposition to plaintiffs motion to remand, defendants argue that plaintiffs state law claims are completely preempted by the Labor-Management Relations Act (“LMRA”), 29 U.S.C. § 185, and by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”), 29 U.S.C. § 1001, et seq. Plaintiff disagrees and asks this Court to remand this case for lack of subject matter jurisdiction.

I. Well-pleaded complaint rule

In order for removal based on federal question to be proper, federal question jurisdiction must have existed at the time the complaint was filed. Federal question jurisdiction exists in those cases “arising under the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States.” 28 U.S.C. § 1331. “It is long settled law that a cause of action arises under federal law only when the plaintiffs well-pleaded complaint raises issues of federal law.” Metropolitan Life Ins. Co. v. Taylor, 481 U.S. 58, 63, 107 S.Ct. 1542, 1546, 95 L.Ed.2d 55 (1987).

Federal preemption of state law is typically a defense and thus is not usually found “within the four corners” of the complaint. Therefore, under the well-pleaded complaint rule, federal preemption alone, in the typical case, cannot serve as the basis for federal question jurisdiction. Id.

However, “Congress may so completely pre-empt a particular area that any civil complaint raising this select group of claims is necessarily federal in character.” Id. at 63-64, 107 S.Ct. at 1546. It is in these situations, where Congress has so completely preempted state law, that federal question jurisdiction can arise despite the fact that plaintiffs well-pleaded complaint appears only to raise state law issues.

II. Complete Preemption

Defendants are correct in asserting that both the LMRA and ERISA can, in certain circumstances, completely preempt state law. See Id. at 64, 67, 107 S.Ct. at 1546-48. However, as shown below, under the facts as alleged by the plaintiff in her complaint, there is no complete preemption of state law by either the LMRA or ERISA.

A. Plaintiffs complaint

Plaintiffs complaint is one for wrongful discharge and for discharge in violation of Michigan public policy. Plaintiff contends that she had an implied just cause employment contract with her employer, defendant UAW. This implied contract, according to the plaintiff, arose from reasonable reliance by plaintiff on policies, practices and procedures of defendant UAW.

Plaintiff also asserts a cause of action for “breach of legitimate expectations.” This cause of action is based, in part, on the same policies, practices and procedures of plaintiffs breach of implied contract claim. In addition, plaintiff cites defendant UAWs constitution which states that an “International Representative”, which plaintiff alleges she was, cannot be terminated without the approval of the International Executive Board.

[271]*271Finally, plaintiffs third cause of action claims that her discharge was in violation of Michigan public policy. Plaintiff alleges that she was a fiduciary of a pension fund and that she was discharged for attempting to fulfill her fiduciary obligations.

B. Complete preemption under the LMRA

§ 301 of the LMRA provides:

Suits for violation of contracts between an employer and a labor organization representing employees ... or between any such labor organizations, may be brought in any district court of the United States having jurisdiction of the parties, without respect to the amount in controversy or without regard to the citizenship of the parties.

29 U.S.C. § 185(a) (emphasis added). In discussing the preemptive power of this statute, the Supreme Court has held:

[T]he pre-emptive force of § 301 is so powerful as to displace entirely any state cause of action ‘for violation of contracts between an employer and a labor organization.’ Any such suit is purely a creature of federal law, notwithstanding the fact that state law would provide a cause of action in the absence of § 301.

Caterpillar Inc. v. Williams, 482 U.S. 386, 394, 107 S.Ct. 2425, 2430, 96 L.Ed.2d 318 (1987) (quoting Franchise Tax Board of Cal. v. Construction Laborers Vacation Trust for Southern Cal., 463 U.S. 1, 23, 103 S.Ct. 2841, 2853-54, 77 L.Ed.2d 420 (1983)).

The plain language of § 301 only grants jurisdiction to suits between “an employer and a labor organization representing employees ... or between any such labor organizations.” “Section 301 says nothing about the content or validity of individual employment contracts.” Caterpillar, 482 U.S. 386, 395, 107 S.Ct. 2425, 2431. In this ease, the “labor organization”, defendant UAW, does not represent plaintiff; it is in fact plaintiffs employer. Suits on private employment contracts between an employer and an employee are not within the jurisdiction of § 301, even if the employer happens to be a labor organization. Kunz v. United Food & Commercial Workers Local 876, 5 F.3d 1006, 1009-10 (6th Cir.1993) (no § 301 jurisdiction where employee was not a member of the collective bargaining unit and thus had no contract with the union); United Food & Commercial Workers Local 951 v. Mulder, 31 F.3d 365, 370-71 (6th Cir.1994) (no § 301 jurisdiction over cause of action asserted by non-union employees because they were not parties to collective bargaining agreement).

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

Related

C.C. Mid West, Inc. v. McDougall
990 F. Supp. 914 (E.D. Michigan, 1998)

Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
911 F. Supp. 269, 1996 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 616, 1996 WL 30463, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/moll-v-international-union-united-automobile-aerospace-agricultural-mied-1996.