Board of Trustees of the Laborers Health and Welfare Trust Fund for Northern…

Background

The plaintiffs, the Board of Trustees of the Laborers Health and Welfare Trust Fund for Northern California and others, brought an action under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA). They alleged that Stump & Sons, Inc. breached a collective bargaining agreement requiring it to make monthly employee fringe-benefit contributions to trust funds administered by the plaintiffs.

Representation issue

Stump & Sons filed an answer through Joann Morgan, who indicated that the company could not afford an attorney. The court cited the Northern District of California’s local rule and Supreme Court precedent stating that a corporation may appear in federal court only through a licensed attorney. A non-attorney therefore could not represent Stump & Sons in this case.

Order

The court ordered Stump & Sons to obtain counsel and have an attorney appear on its behalf by June 25, 2020. The court also provided contact information for the Legal Help Center, which offers free assistance. If no attorney appeared by June 26, 2020, the court stated that it would consider the plaintiffs’ motion for entry of default, explaining that default was the appropriate remedy for an unrepresented corporation.

The order did not enter default, decide the plaintiffs’ ERISA claim, or determine whether Stump & Sons owed the alleged contributions. It was an order addressing the corporation’s representation in the litigation.