Boards of Trustees of the Alaska Pipe Trades U.A. Local 367 Health & Security Trust Fund v. Polar Refrig & Restaurant Equip, Inc. ( 2019 )

1 2 3 4 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 5 DISTRICT OF ALASKA 6 7 8 BOARDS OF TRUSTEES OF THE ) ALASKA PIPE TRADES U.A. LOCAL ) 9 367 HEALTH & SECURITY TRUST ) FUND, et al., ) 10 ) Plaintiffs, ) 3:18-CV-00050 JWS 11 ) vs. ) ORDER AND OPINION 12 ) ) [Re: Doc. 15] 13 POLAR REFRIG & RESTAURANT ) EQUIP, INC., et al., ) 14 ) Defendants. ) 15 ) 16 17 I. MOTION PRESENTED 18 At docket 15 Plaintiffs Boards of Trustees of the Alaska Pipe Trades U.A. Local 19 367 Health & Security Trust Fund, Anchorage Alaska Area Pipe Trades Local Joint 20 Apprenticeship Training Fund, U.A. Locals No. 375 and 367 Supplemental Pension 21 Trust Fund, International Training Fund, and Plumbers & Pipefitters National Pension 22 Fund ("Trust Funds") move for summary judgment against Defendant Polar Refrig & 23 Restaurant Equip, Inc. ("Polar") and ask the court to award them payment of Polar's 24 outstanding benefit contributions for the hours worked by Polar's employees from 25 September 2016 through March 2018, as well as liquidated damages, interest, audit 26 fees, and attorneys' fees. The Trust Funds also seek summary judgment against 27 Defendant Hartford Fire Insurance Company ("Hartford") to collect proceeds from the 28 General Contractor's License Bond Hartford issued to Polar. Polar did not respond to -1- 1 the motion, but the Trust Funds filed a reply at docket 20. Oral argument was not 2 requested and would not be of assistance to the court. 3 II. STANDARD OF REVIEW 4 Summary judgment is appropriate where “there is no genuine dispute as to any 5 material fact and the movant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.”1 The materiality 6 requirement ensures that “[o]nly disputes over facts that might affect the outcome of the 7 suit under the governing law will properly preclude the entry of summary judgment.”2 8 Ultimately, “summary judgment will not lie if the . . . evidence is such that a reasonable 9 jury could return a verdict for the nonmoving party.”3 However, summary judgment is 10 mandated “against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the 11 existence of an element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear 12 the burden of proof at trial.”4 13 The moving party has the burden of showing that there is no genuine dispute as 14 to any material fact.5 Where the nonmoving party will bear the burden of proof at trial on 15 a dispositive issue, the moving party need not present evidence to show that summary 16 judgment is warranted; it need only point out the lack of any genuine dispute as to 17 material fact.6 Once the moving party has met this burden, the nonmoving party must 18 set forth evidence of specific facts showing the existence of a genuine issue for trial.7 19 All evidence presented by the non-movant must be believed for purposes of summary 20 21 1Fed. R. Civ. P. 56(a). 22 2Anderson v. Liberty Lobby, Inc., 477 U.S. 242, 248 (1986). 23 3Id. 24 25 4Celotex Corp. v. Catrett, 477 U.S. 317, 322 (1986). 26 5Id. at 323. 27 6Id. at 323-25. 28 7Anderson, 477 U.S. at 248-49. -2- 1 judgment, and all justifiable inferences must be drawn in favor of the non-movant.8 2 However, the non-moving party may not rest upon mere allegations or denials but must 3 show that there is sufficient evidence supporting the claimed factual dispute to require a 4 fact-finder to resolve the parties’ differing versions of the truth at trial.9 5 III. UNDISPUTED FACTS 6 The Trust Funds are jointly administered labor-management employee benefit 7 trust funds, organized and operated pursuant to ERISA, 29 U.S.C. § 1001, et seq. and 8 created under Section 302(c) of the LMRA, 29 U.S.C. §§ 185 and 186(c). The Trust 9 Funds provide employee benefits to covered employees of employers who are 10 signatories to a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). In March of 2016, Polar 11 executed an agreement that bound it to the National Service and Maintenance 12 Agreement (NSMA), which is a CBA between the United Association of Journeymen 13 and Apprentices of the Plumbing and Pipe Fitting Industry of the United States and 14 Canada, AFL-CIO and the Mechanical Service Contractors of America. The NSMA 15 requires Polar to contribute to the Trust Funds—the local ones and the International 16 Training Fund. It incorporates the terms and conditions of the local CBAs for 17 determining specific contribution requirements. Polar was also party to an agreement 18 with the Plumbers & Pipefitters National Pension Fund (National Pension Fund 19 Agreement) which required it to contribute to that particular Trust Fund. By signing the 20 National Pension Fund Agreement and the NSMA, Polar agreed to the terms of the 21 written trust agreements. The individual trust agreements provide for the payment of 22 liquidated damages and interest in the event of delinquent contributions and set how 23 those fees would be calculated. 24 25 26 27 8Id. at 255. 28 9Id. at 248-49. -3- 1 Following the execution of the various agreements, Polar hired employees who 2 performed work subject to the agreements' scope of work provisions. It also obtained a 3 $25,000 bond from Hartford to insure against a breach of contract. 4 An audit conducted in 2018 revealed that Polar was delinquent in its contributions 5 to the local Trust Funds from September 2016 through March 2018 in the amount of 6 $12,356.81. The audit also calculated interest on the delinquent payments to be 7 $1,176.11 and liquidated damages stemming from the delinquency to be $3,109.82. 8 Fees for the audit, which Polar was obligated to pay under the agreements, amounted 9 to $3,612.50. It was also determined by a trust administrator that Polar owed 10 contributions in the amount of $10,659.11 to the Plumbers & Pipefitters National 11 Pension Fund and the International Training Fund for this same period. The 12 administrator calculated the interest owed to be $3,998.25 and the liquidated damages 13 to be $1,537.64. The Trust Funds subsequently filed this action to collect benefit 14 contributions from Polar. 15 Polar has not controverted the facts set forth by the Trust Funds, nor has it paid 16 the amounts owed. The facts are supported by the materials submitted in conjunction 17 with the motion. 18 IV. DISCUSSION 19 The facts set forth in the motion and the supporting materials, which have not 20 been contested, sufficiently demonstrate that the Trust Funds are entitled to summary 21 judgment. Polar is liable for unpaid contributions to the Trust Funds in the amount of 22 $23,015.92. 23 Under 29 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(2), the Trust Funds are entitled to fees as well.10 24 These fees include interest on the unpaid contributions, liquidated damages provided 25 26 10See Nw. Adm'rs, Inc. v. Albertson's Inc., 104 F.3d 253, 257 (9th Cir. 1996) (noting that 27 a benefit plan is entitled to a mandatory fee award under ERISA if the employer is delinquent at the time the action is filed, the district court enters judgment against the employer, and the plan 28 provides for an award of fees). -4- 1 for under the plan, reasonable attorneys' fees and costs, and any other legal or 2 equitable relief that is appropriate.11 3 The unpaid contributions amount to $23,015.92. Interest on the missed 4 payments totals $5,174.36. Liquidated damages amount to $4,647.46. The audit fee is 5 $3,612.50. Polar is therefore liable for a total of $36,450.24 plus attorneys' fees. 6 The Trust Funds are also entitled to summary judgment as to their claim for 7 payment of $25,000 under the General Contractor's Bond issued by Hartford. The 8 amount of contributions plus interest and fees owed under the various agreements 9 totals more than $25,000 and therefore the entire amount of the bond's proceeds shall 10 be paid to the Trust Funds to partially satisfy the amount owed by Polar. 11 V. CONCLUSION 12 Based on the preceding discussion, the Trust Funds' motion for summary 13 judgment at docket 15 is GRANTED. Polar is liable for $36,450.24, plus attorneys’ fees 14 and costs. The proceeds of Polar's General Contractor's Bond shall be paid to the Trust 15 Funds in partial satisfaction of Polar's liability. 16 DATED this 5th day of August 2019. 17 18 /s/ JOHN W. SEDWICK SENIOR JUDGE, UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 1129 U.S.C. § 1132(g)(2). -5-