United States v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters

728 F. Supp. 1032, 134 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2281, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 378, 1990 WL 2540
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedJanuary 17, 1990
Docket88 CIV. 4486 (DNE)
StatusPublished
Cited by83 cases

This text of 728 F. Supp. 1032 (United States v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters) 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
United States v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 728 F. Supp. 1032, 134 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2281, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 378, 1990 WL 2540 (S.D.N.Y. 1990).

Opinion

OPINION & ORDER

EDELSTEIN, District Judge:

This opinion emanates from the voluntary settlement in the action commenced by the United States of America (the “Government”) against the defendants Internation *1036 al Brotherhood of Teamsters (the “IBT”) and the IBT’s General Executive Board (the “GEB”) embodied in a consent order entered March 14, 1989 (the “Consent Decree”). The remedial provisions in the Consent Decree provided for three Court-appointed officials, an Independent Administrator to oversee the remedial provisions, an Investigations Officer to bring charges against corrupt IBT officials, and an Election Officer to oversee the electoral process leading up to and including the 1991 election for International Officers (the “Court Officers”). The goal of the Consent Decree is to rid the IBT of the hideous influence of organized crime through the election and prosecution provisions.

These rulings arise in response to three separate motions by the Government asking this Court to issue extraordinary writs by its powers under the All Writs Act, 28 U.S.C. § 1651, to enjoin collateral suits filed by IBT members, locals, joint councils, and area conferences (the “subordinate entities”) — in sister United States District Courts in other judicial districts — which attempt to litigate matters relating to the Consent Decree. These actions, arising in Chicago, Illinois, Cleveland, Ohio, and Newark, New Jersey, (together, the “collateral lawsuits”) involve actions which either seek relief from rulings issued by this Court in relation to the implementation of the Consent Decree or a delineation of a subordinate entity’s rights under the Consent Decree.

The Government, in sum, seeks to have this Court enjoin all lawsuits which seek to litigate issues arising under the Consent Decree filed in any forum other than the Southern District of New York. This request would serve the purpose of channeling all such litigation to this forum. The Government also asks this Court to compel the withdrawal of pending collateral lawsuits. The Government further seeks a definitive determination from this Court binding all subordinate entities to the Consent Decree.

This Court has entered and extended a temporary restraining order pursuant to the All Writs Act and Rule 65(b) enjoining any subordinate entity from prosecuting any existing collateral lawsuit or filing any new collateral suit which seeks to adjudicate matters relating to the Consent Decree in any district other than before this Court. This Court has received submissions from almost half of the 700 subordinate entities opposing this injunction and vehemently denying that they are bound by the Consent Decree. Since this injunction is necessary “in aid of” this Court’s jurisdiction over a nationwide litigation with unique circumstances, the Government’s request for a permanent injunction is granted.

I. The Current Litigation

Since taking effect the Consent Decree has engendered a flow of dispute and discord between the Government, the IBT, and the Court Officers appointed to the positions the Consent Decree created. Despite the constant undercurrent of displeasure with the Consent Decree by the IBT, the recent actions by subordinate entities seeking independent adjudication of related matters have created an eruption of litigation unprecedented even by the warped standards practiced by the IBT in this case.

A. The Chicago, Cleveland, and New Jersey Suits

The first suit filed was on November 17, 1989 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois (the “Chicago suit”) captioned Chauffeurs, Teamsters & Helpers et al. v. Michael H. Holland, Election Officer, No. 89 Civ. 8577 (N.D.Ill.) by a number of Chicago, Illinois area IBT Locals and their officers, (the “Chicago plaintiffs”). 2 On November 21, 1989, the Government presented and this Court signed an order requiring the Chica *1037 go plaintiffs to appear before this Court at a hearing held November 27, 1989 and show cause why (1) an injunction should not be entered by this Court enjoining the Chicago plaintiffs from prosecuting the Chicago suit, and (2) Chicago plaintiff Daniel Ligurotis, a signatory to the Consent Decree, should not be adjudged in contempt of the permanent injunction at ¶ E.10 of the Consent Decree for obstructing and interfering with the work of the Election Officer (the “Chicago order to show cause”).

In sum, the Chicago suit alleges that the actions Election Officer Michael Holland intends to take with regard to supervising the IBT’s 1991 election and the initial local elections for delegates to the 1991 Convention have overstepped bounds set by the IBT Constitution. This overall allegation is buttressed by claims that provisions in 11 F.12(D) of the Consent Decree impermis-sibly amend the IBT Constitution. The Chicago plaintiffs further charge that the Memorandum and Order of this Court dated October 18, 1989 (the “October 18, 1989 Opinion”) contravenes the IBT Constitution.

The real gist of the Chicago plaintiffs’ allegations is that the Consent Decree and its interpretation in this Court’s October 18, 1989 Opinion granted both the International IBT and the GEB too much power to alter the IBT Constitution, and upset the delicate federalism that governs relations between the International IBT and its hundreds of subordinate entities. The Chicago plaintiffs, save Daniel Ligurotis, were uninvolved in the original suit and, they claim, neither explicit signatories nor implicit as-sentors to the Consent Decree. The Chicago plaintiffs sought a declaratory judgment immunizing themselves from submitting to the strictures of the Consent Decree, namely electoral reform resulting in democratic secret ballot elections.

The Chicago order to show cause required all parties to the Chicago suit to appear at a hearing on November 27, 1989. On November 27, 1989, Counsel for Liguro-tis appeared, and the other plaintiffs in the Chicago suit defaulted. On November 27, 1989, this Court issued a preliminary injunction pursuant to its inherent power under the All Writs Act enjoining all of the plaintiffs in the Chicago suit from taking any further actions in connection with that suit except filing a notice of voluntary dismissal pursuant to Rule 41(a)(l)(i) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure or responding to motions made by the defendant in the Chicago suit. On November 29, 1989, the Chicago plaintiffs filed an amended complaint which dropped Consent Decree signatory Daniel Ligurotis as a plaintiff, and withdrew counts with connections to the Southern District of New York.

On December 8, 1989, this Court held a factual hearing on the contempt portion of the Chicago order to show cause. At that hearing, Chicago plaintiff Daniel Ligurotis was required to refute testamentary and affidavit evidence offered by the Government as to why his involvement as a Chicago plaintiff would not constitute civil contempt in violation of the permanent injunction located at 11 E.10 of the Consent Decree against interference with the work of the Court Officers.

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Bluebook (online)
728 F. Supp. 1032, 134 L.R.R.M. (BNA) 2281, 1990 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 378, 1990 WL 2540, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/united-states-v-international-brotherhood-of-teamsters-nysd-1990.