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

Background

The petitioners were the trustees of several benefit funds and Carpenter Contract Alliance of Metropolitan New York. Rashel Construction Corp. became bound by a project labor agreement and a collective bargaining agreement. Those agreements required Rashel to make contributions for covered employee work and to provide books and payroll records for audits. They also incorporated a collection policy requiring arbitration of contribution disputes and allowing interest, liquidated damages, audit costs, attorneys’ fees, and other collection costs in specified circumstances.

Rashel refused to comply with an audit. The petitioners therefore conducted an estimated audit for April 1, 2018, through December 26, 2020, and determined that Rashel had not paid $15,169.92 in required contributions. After Rashel refused to pay the audit findings, the petitioners began arbitration.

The arbitrator held a hearing attended by both parties. Rashel did not dispute the principal amount but challenged the additional audit costs of $16,672.50. It argued that the costs were excessive, questioned why they were so high, and contended that the petitioners had offered to waive them. On September 1, 2022, the arbitrator rejected those arguments and awarded the petitioners $40,763.17, consisting of the unpaid contributions, interest, liquidated damages, audit costs, promotional fund contributions, court costs, attorneys’ fees, and the arbitrator’s fee. The award also provided for interest at 6.75% per year from the award’s date. Rashel did not comply with the award.

Court’s Analysis

The petitioners sought confirmation of the award through a motion for summary judgment. Because Rashel did not oppose the motion, the court reviewed the petition and supporting record under the summary-judgment standard. The court explained that review of a labor arbitration award is highly deferential. The court does not reconsider the dispute’s merits; it asks whether the arbitrator was at least arguably interpreting and applying the parties’ agreement and acting within the arbitrator’s authority.

The court found no genuine dispute of material fact. The record showed that Rashel was required to make the contributions and that the payments were not made. The arbitrator had considered the evidence concerning the audit costs, including email records, auditor testimony, and the collection policy. The court found a legally sufficient, or “colorable,” justification for the award.

The court also found no basis to vacate the award. It found no evidence of corruption, fraud, undue means, unfair bias, misconduct, prejudicial behavior, action beyond the arbitrator’s authority, or disregard of the law.

Attorneys’ Fees and Costs

The court granted in part the petitioners’ application for attorneys’ fees and costs. The agreements authorized recovery of fees and litigation costs, and the court also found that Rashel had not justified its refusal to follow the award. The petitioners requested $2,769.50 in attorneys’ fees and $164.14 in costs.

The court reduced the requested hourly rate for Adrianna R. Grancio from $275 to $250, reduced Maura Moosnick’s rate from $275 to $225, and approved the requested $120 hourly rate for the legal assistants. Those rates produced an attorneys’ fee award of $2,542. The court also awarded the requested $164.14 in costs.

Disposition

The court granted the petitioners’ motion for summary judgment. It directed the Clerk of Court to enter judgment for $43,469.31, consisting of the $40,763.17 arbitration award, $2,542 in additional attorneys’ fees, and $164.14 in additional costs. The judgment carries post-judgment interest at the statutory rate. The court also awarded pre-judgment interest at 6.75% per year from the date of the arbitration award through entry of judgment. The court directed the Clerk to terminate pending motions, adjourn remaining dates, and close the case.