Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Scivally v. Graney, 1st Cir. (1994)
Scivally v. Graney, 1st Cir. (1994)
No. 93-2075
CHARLA SCIVALLY,
Plaintiff, Appellant,
v.
WILLIAM R. GRANEY, ET AL.,
Defendants, Appellee.
__________________
APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF MASSACHUSETTS
[Hon. Rya W. Zobel, U.S. District Judge]
___________________
___________________
Before
Breyer, Chief Judge,
___________
Cyr and Stahl, Circuit Judges.
______________
___________________
__________________
__________________
Per Curiam.
___________
dismissal
Polaroid
of
Appellant,
her
Charla Scivally,
amended
Corporation,
complaint
Israel
against
Booth,
William
appeals the
appellees,
Graney
and
the Racketeer
[RICO],
judgment
18
to
Influenced and
U.S.C.
Graney
1964(c),
and
Corrupt
and
Tognarelli
Organizations Act
the
grant of
on
appellant's
101(a)(2)
411(a)(2)).
I
We affirm.
summary
claim
of Title I
Act [LMRDA]
In
1946, Polaroid
Committee
established the
[the committee]
to enhance
and funded
Polaroid
treated as a department
committee activities.
From
1983 to
1992,
pursuant to 29
U.S.C.
Chairman of the
432.
Appellee
committee in 1989.
communication between
of Polaroid.
Polaroid Employees'
to the
committee
Appellee
year.
as a
Graney was
elected
Tognarelli was
representative in
February
1992.
Upon
committee
her
election,
"more
Scivally
responsive
to
sought
its
to
render
membership
and
the
less
-2-
subservient to
the
employer Polaroid."
Department
officers
of
Labor
[DOL]
After
failing to reform
Scivally filed a
asserting
that
violation of 29
committee
U.S.C.
481.
In
June 1992,
manner
of
the DOL
electing
Thereupon, Booth,
of Polaroid,
and Tognarelli
made preliminary
the committee
findings that
officers
was
Executive Officer
Upon receipt
of the report,
there
was no
longer
Graney
report" notifying
improper.
dissolved.
filed a "terminal
See 29 C.F.R.
___
Scivally's complaint on
an entity
the
falling
the
within the
allegation
29 U.S.C.
violation
of
29
U.S.C.
186(b).1
186(a).
Since
She alleges
the payments
____________________
1.
Section 186(a)
occurred over
racketeering
injuries:
(1) lost
She
wages and
asserts
five
benefits the
a pattern of
categories
of
committee would
as a member of a union
representative.
loss of her
The district
to
under Title I of
position as a committee
activity, Holmes
______
Corp., 112
____
h[er] business or
RICO, a plaintiff
S.Ct. 1311,
requisite proximate
18 U.S.C.
proximately caused by
the
To establish
the
Id. at 1318.
__
____________________
and bargain collectively through representatives of their own
choosing; or (4) to any officer or employee of a labor
organization . . . with intent to influence him in respect to
any of his actions, decisions, or duties as a representative
of employees or as such officer or employee of such labor
organization."
Section 186(b) makes it unlawful to accept
any payment prohibited by subsection (a).
-4-
sufficient facts
caused
(or in
cases caused
all) by
the
alleged
that
proximate
Her
appellees'
assumption that, if
pattern
of
bribery
the
was
labor union,
wage and
is too
See, e.g.,
___ ___
(plaintiff
speculative
the
injuries
were
519, 542
indirect
and
Clayton
Act)
standards);
require
whose
459 U.S.
(applying
Holmes, 112
______
showing
of
Contractors
___________
"applies
Scivally's
alternate
traditional
proximate
at 1317
(reasoning used
S.Ct.
proximate cause
just
as
in
to
Associated General
__________________
readily
contention--that
cause
to
1964(c)").
the employees
would
also alleges
that
she was
"cheated" out
adoption of an
ESOP.
of
The
-5-
of
Chancery.
Polaroid
________
Corp.,
____
employee
sentiment
toward
court to
that Graney
that Polaroid
the ESOP
and
that
She
Tognarelli falsely
this
alleges
testified
productively if the
record
belies
Scivally's
claim.
First,
the
fraction
its findings.
findings
court
transcript,
from the
more than
"from
500
3,000
exhibits and
trial
but
Id.
__
at 272.
of
extensive excerpts
depositions of 34 witnesses").
pages
the
court's
failure
to
set
injuries
may
have
been
-6-
aside
459
the
ESOP.
See
___
U.S.
at
542
(since
produced
by
independent
marked
injuries she
of the committee.
the
cessation
activity,
any
of
injury
suffered
Insofar
appellees'
suffered
as the
alleged
from
the
could
also
not have
alleges that
occurred
but
for the
the
dissolution
racketeering
Tognarelli.
Even if
injured in
186(a)
supported by
&
(b).
had for
the
committee
had
of 29
been
committee--would
racketeering activity.
which a
injury--her rights to
not
have existed
participate in
absent
the illegal
an expectation interest
that
would
not
violation,
have
it would
existed
but
defy logic
for
the
alleged
to conclude
RICO
the [causation
-7-
requisite
to confer
RICO
standing] exists."2
Heinold
_______
v.
entered
activity of
into
contract
because
defendant cannot
of
recover
allegedly
for injury
illegal
sustained
alleges that
U.S.C.
without
appellees Graney
411(a)(2),3 when
consulting
its
and Tognarelli
they dissolved
membership.
The
to
the committee
district
court
cannot
show
that
the
dissolution
of
the
committee
with
Scivally
alleges
other
members
that
the
of
committee
labor
as
organization.
it
existed
was
____________________
2. Similarly, appellant suffered no cognizable injury in
being deprived of her rights to participate in an independent
labor organization prior to the dissolution of the committee.
On the one hand, absent the alleged racketeering activity,
the committee would not have existed.
On the other,
appellant has alleged no facts which would support the
conclusion that but for Polaroid's establishment of the
committee, Polaroid employees would have established an
independent labor union.
3.
According to 29 U.S.C.
411(a)(2):
employer
dominated.
organization is an
U.S.C.
domination
of
158(a)(2).
the National
dominated
Employer
of 29
Labor Relations
union must
labor
be
disestablished.4
See
___
an employer
Carpenter
_________
to constitute domination of
so extensive as
F.2d 1208,
1215 n.7
(1st Cir.
1979) ("the Board applies the theory that once domination has
been shown, no remedy
ever be adequate").
committee be
dissolved, an order to
1939),
U.S. 453,
orders the
finding domination
complete disestablishment
of the
411(a)(2), which
dissolution,
Scivally
belong
organization."
only
have been
to
to cure
411(a)(2).
have
of
the
"labor
said
members
the disestablishment
necessary
had under
to
violated by
alleges were
an
of the
committee would
unfair practice
and
that
violated
right
which
would
have
been
____________________
5. According to 29 U.S.C.
chapter 11 of Title 29:
401(i),
"Labor
organization"
organization engaged in an
commerce . . .
According to
for
the purposes
means
a
labor
industry affecting
401(j):
is
the
certified
representative
of
of
-10-
Affirmed.
________
-11-