Trustees Of The New York City District Council Of Carpenters Pension Fund v…

Background

The plaintiffs are the Trustees of the New York City District Council of Carpenters Pension Fund, Welfare Fund, Annuity Fund, and Apprenticeship, Journeyman Retraining, Educational and Industry Fund; the Trustees of the New York City Carpenters Relief and Charity Fund; and the Carpenter Contractor Alliance of Metropolitan New York. They sued Prime Installations Inc. and G & S Concepts, Inc. (G&S).

The defendants were served with the summons and complaint but did not file an answer. The Clerk noted their default on January 7, 2025, and the defendants did not appear at the show-cause hearing on February 18, 2025.

Court’s Analysis

The court explained that a default admits the complaint’s well-pleaded factual allegations, but the court still must determine whether those allegations establish liability as a matter of law. The court found that the complaint adequately alleged that G&S and Prime operated as a single, integrated employer, including through interrelated operations and management, shared work equipment, and substantially identical management, customers, and business purposes.

Based on those allegations, the court concluded that G&S was Prime’s “alter ego”—a separate entity treated as responsible for Prime’s legal and contractual obligations in this context. The court also found that the complaint adequately alleged that G&S was bound by the collective bargaining agreement and jointly and severally liable for Prime’s debts and obligations under the agreement and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

Ruling

The court granted the plaintiffs’ motion for default judgment. It entered judgment declaring that Prime and G&S are alter egos, successors, and/or a single employer, so that both defendants are bound by the collective bargaining agreement and jointly and severally liable for each other’s obligations under the agreement and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

The order referred damages to Magistrate Judge Robyn F. Tarnofsky for a damages inquest. It also directed G&S to submit to an audit of its books and records for the period from October 18, 2018, through the present, and allowed the plaintiffs 30 days after the audit’s completion to make further submissions concerning damages. The order awards post-judgment interest at the statutory rate and leaves open other relief the court considers just and proper. No final damages amount is stated in the opinion.