Twin City Pipe Trades Service v. O’Laughlin Plumbing & Heating

Plaintiff filed suit to collect fringe benefits owed to union employee benefit funds by a plumbing company under 29 U.S.C. 1145. The court concluded that O'Laughlin did not unequivocally express an intent to terminate its participation in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) for two reasons. First, under the circumstances, the court's examination of O'Loughlin's conduct was paramount to the court's consideration of the two letters it sent to the Union. Here, O'Laughlin manifested an intent to abide and be bound by the terms of the CBA by continuing to make fringe benefit contributions on behalf of its employees throughout the 2011 calendar year. Second, the two letters O'Laughlin sent to the Union were ineffective to express an unequivocal intent to terminate participation in the CBA in any event. Accordingly, the court reversed the district court's determination that O'Laughlin unequivocally terminated its participation in the CBA and remanded for further proceedings. View "Twin City Pipe Trades Service v. O'Laughlin Plumbing & Heating" on Justia Law