Chauffeurs, Teamsters, and Helpers Local No. 391 v. Terry
Supreme Court of the United States
Argued December 6, 1989 Decided March 20, 1990
Full case name: Chauffeurs, Teamsters, and Helpers Local No. 391 v. Terry, et al. Citations: 494 U.S. 558; 110 S. Ct. 1339; 108 L. Ed. 2d 519; 1990 U.S. LEXIS 1530; 58 U.S.L.W. 4345; 114 Lab. Cas. (CCH) P11,930; 133 L.R.R.M. 2793 Prior history: On certiorari from the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Holding
An action by an employee for a breach of a labor union's duty of fair representation entitles him to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment.
Court membership
Chief Justice: William Rehnquist Associate Justices: William J. Brennan, Byron White, Thurgood Marshall, Harry Blackmun, John Paul Stevens, Sandra Day O'Connor, Antonin Scalia, Anthony Kennedy
Case opinions
Majority by: Marshall (parts I, II, III-B, IV) Joined by: Rehnquist, Brennan, White, Blackmun, Stevens Concurrence by: Marshall (part III-A) Joined by: Rehnquist, White, Blackmun Concurrence by: Brennan Concurrence by: Stevens Dissent by: Kennedy Joined by: O'Connor, Scalia
Laws applied
U.S. Const. amend. VII; 29 U.S.C. § 185

Chauffeurs, Teamsters, and Helpers Local No. 391 v. Terry, 494 U.S. 558 (1990)^[1], was a case in which the United States Supreme Court held that an action by an employee for a breach of a labor union's duty of fair representation entitled him to a jury trial under the Seventh Amendment. Image File history File links Seal_of_the_United_States_Supreme_Court. ... The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the judicial branch of the United States federal government. ... William Hubbs Rehnquist (October 1, 1924 – September 3, 2005) was an American lawyer, jurist and political figure, who served as an Associate Justice on the Supreme Court of the United States and later as the Chief Justice of the United States. ... William J. Brennan, official portrait, 1976. ... Byron White, official portrait. ... Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American jurist and the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. ... Justice Harry Blackmun Harry Andrew Blackmun (November 12, 1908 – March 4, 1999) was an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1970 to 1994. ... John Paul Stevens (born April 20, 1920) is an American jurist and the senior Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. ... Sandra Day OConnor (born March 26, 1930) is a former American jurist and politician who served as the first female Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1981 to 2006. ... Antonin Gregory Scalia (born March 11, 1936) is an American jurist on the Supreme Court of the United States who has been a prominent conservative and originalist voice of textualism in statutory interpretation and original meaning in constitutional interpretation. ... For other people of the same name, see Anthony Kennedy (disambiguation). ... Amendment VII (the Seventh Amendment) of the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, codifies the right to jury trial in certain civil trials. ... The United States Code (U.S.C.) is a compilation and codification of the general and permanent federal Law of the United States. ... // Case citation is the system used in common law countries such as the United States, England and Wales, Canada, New Zealand, Australia and India to uniquely identify the location of past court cases in special series of books called reporters or law reports. ... This article is about the year. ... The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States and leads the judicial branch of the United States federal government. ... A union (labor union in American English; trade union, sometimes trades union, in British English; either labour union or trade union in Canadian English) is a legal entity consisting of employees or workers having a common interest, such as all the assembly workers for one employer, or all the workers... Amendment VII (the Seventh Amendment) of the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, codifies the right to jury trial in certain civil trials. ...

Facts

McLean Trucking Corporation and the defendant/petitioner union, Chauffeurs, Teamsters, and Helpers Local No. 391, were parties to a collective bargaining agreement which governed employment at McLean. The plaintiffs/respondents in this matter were Union members employed as truck drivers by McLean. In 1982, McLean began to shut down some of its terminals and reorganizing others. The company transferred plaintiffs to its terminal in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, and granted them special seniority rights over inactive employees at that terminal who had been temporarily laid off. A defendant or defender is any party who is required to answer the complaint of a plaintiff or pursuer in a civil lawsuit before a court, or any party who has been formally charged or accused of violating a criminal statute. ... The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT), formerly known by the name International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Chauffeurs, Warehousemen and Helpers of America, is one of the largest labor unions in the United States. ... The Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) is the contract between the NHL and the NHLPA that defines the structure of procedural, financial, and disciplinary relationships between the NHL, its teams, and its players. ... A plaintiff, also known as a claimant or complainant, is the party who initiates a lawsuit (also known as an action) before a court. ... 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Flag Seal Nickname: Twin City Location Location in North Carolina Coordinates , Government Country State Counties United States North Carolina Forsyth County Founded Incorporated 1889 1913 Mayor Allen Joines (D) Geographical characteristics Area     City 283. ... Seniority is the concept of a person or group being in charge or in command of another person or group. ... Downsizing refers to layoffs initiated by a company in order to cut labor costs by reducing the size of the company. ...

After working at Winston-Salem for six weeks, the plaintiffs were alternately laid off and recalled several times. Some of the laid off truckers were stripped of their special seniority rights. The plaintiffs filed a grievance with the union, alleging that McLean had breached the collective bargaining agreement by giving inactive employees preference over them. The grievance committee ordered McLean to recall the plaintiffs and lay off the inactive drivers who had been recalled, and to recognize plaintiffs’ special seniority rights until the inactive employees were recalled properly. McLean obeyed the order of the grievance committee at first, but then recalled the inactive employees, causing them to gain seniority status over the plaintiffs. In the next round of layoffs, this meant that the plaintiffs were laid off first. Plaintiffs then filed another grievance with the union, alleging that McLean’s actions were intended to circumvent the grievance committee’s initial order. But the grievance committee held that McLean had acted legitimately. This pattern of temporary layoffs and recalls continued, prompting plaintiffs to file another grievance, but the Union did not refer the third grievance to a grievance committee, instead ruling that the relevant issues had already been decided.

In July 1983, plaintiffs brought suit against both the Union and McLean in the United States District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina, alleging that McLean had violated the collective bargaining agreement in violation of the Labor Management Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 185, and alleging that the Union had breached its duty of fair representation. Plaintiffs requested a permanent injunction requiring the defendants to restore their seniority and cease their illegal activity. They further requested compensatory damages for lost wages and health benefits. McLean filed for bankruptcy in 1986, and all the claims against it were voluntarily dismissed. 1983 (MCMLXXXIII) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina 24 counties in the center of North Carolina. ... The United States Code (U.S.C.) is a compilation and codification of the general and permanent federal Law of the United States. ... An injunction is an equitable remedy in the form of a court order that either prohibits or compels (restrains or enjoins) a party from continuing a particular activity. ... Compensatory damages are damages awarded for civil cases, it is awarded to the succesful party, in the case of the plaintiff, it is awarded as a compensation for the pain undegone and also in most cases is included the legal services payment, however if it is the defendant that wins... A wage is the amount of money paid for some specified quantity of labour. ... Insurance is the business of providing protection against financial aspects of risk, such as those to property, life, health and legal liability. ... The examples and perspective in this article or section may not represent a worldwide view. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Plaintiffs had requested a jury trial in their pleadings, but the Union moved to strike the demand for a jury trial, on the grounds that the no right to a jury trial exists in a duty of fair representation suit. The District Court denied the defendant’s motion to strike, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed, holding that the Seventh Amendment entitled the plaintiffs to a jury trial on their claims for monetary damages. A jury trial is a trial in which the judge of the facts, as opposed to the judge of the law, is a jury, made up of citizens who are usually randomly selected and are generally not legal professionals. ... In the law, a pleading is one of the papers filed with a court in a civil action, such as a complaint, a demurrer, or an answer. ... The United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following districts: District of Maryland Western, Middle, and Eastern Districts of North Carolina District of South Carolina Western and Eastern Districts of Virginia Northern and Southern Districts...

Majority Opinion

Justice Marshall wrote for the majority. He began his opinion by explaining that the right to a jury trial provided by the Seventh Amendment encompasses more than the common law forms of action recognized in 1791 (when the Bill of Rights was ratified), but rather any lawsuit in which parties’ legal rights where to be determined, as opposed to suits which only involve equitable rights and remedies. He proposed a two-part test, first comparing the statutory action created by Congress to the 18th century actions brought in the courts of England prior to the merger of the courts of law and equity; then, examining the remedy sought by the plaintiff to determine whether it was legal or equitable in nature. Thurgood Marshall (July 2, 1908 – January 24, 1993) was an American jurist and the first African American to serve on the Supreme Court of the United States. ... This article concerns the common-law legal system, as contrasted with the civil law legal system; for other meanings of the term, within the field of law, see common law (disambiguation). ... 1791 (MDCCXCI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 11-day-slower Julian calendar). ... A bill of rights is a statement of certain rights which, under a societys laws, citizens and/or residents either have, want to have, or ought to have. ... A lawsuit is a civil action brought before a court in which the party commencing the action, the plaintiff, seeks a legal remedy. ... The Court of Chancery, London, early 19th century This article is about concept of equity in Anglo-American jurisprudence. ... For the actors guilds called equity, see Actors Equity Association (U.S.) or British Actors Equity Association (U.K.). For equity as the value of an ownership interest in property, see ownership equity. ... A statute is a formal, written law of a country or state, written and enacted by its legislative authority, perhaps to then be ratified by the highest executive in the government, and finally published. ... Congress in Joint Session. ... (17th century - 18th century - 19th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 18th century refers to the century that lasted from 1701 through 1800. ... Royal motto (French): Dieu et mon droit (Translated: God and my right) Englands location (dark green) within the United Kingdom (light green), with the Republic of Ireland (blue) to its west Languages English Capital London Largest city London Area – Total Ranked 1st UK 130,395 km² Population –mid-2004...

Since actions to enforce collective bargaining agreements were unknown in 18th-century England (such agreements were unlawful at the time), the union argued that the action brought by the plaintiffs was, in essence, an attempt to vacate an arbitration award, which historically was considered an action in equity. Marshall rejected this argument because there had been no arbitration with regards to the union’s duty of fair representation. The union further argued that the suit was comparable to an action for breach of fiduciary duty (i.e. a suit concerning a trust), which was also considered an equitable action. The plaintiffs countered by comparing their suit to an action against an attorney for malpractice, which was an action at law. Arbitration is a final and binding dispute resolution process. ... A fiduciary is a person who occupies a position of trust in relation to someone else such that he is required to act for the latters benefit within the scope of that relationship. ... ... An attorney is someone who represents someone else in the transaction of business: For attorney-at-law, see lawyer, solicitor, barrister or civil law notary. ... In law, malpractice is type of tort in which the misfeasance, malfeasance or nonfeasance of a professional under a duty to act fails to follow generally accepted professional standards. ...

Marshall conceded that the analogy to a trust action was more convincing, but reasoned that the right to a jury trial depended more on the nature of the issues to be tried. Although there was a fiduciary duty issue between the plaintiffs and the union, there was also an underlying breach of contract—that of the collective bargaining agreement between McLean and the plaintiffs. A contract is a promise or an agreement that is enforced or recognized by the law. ...

Since the first part of the analysis failed to produce a dispositive result, Marshall then turned to the type of relief the plaintiffs sought. The only remaining remedy the plaintiffs sought against the union was compensatory damages, which are the traditional legal remedy. While restitutionary remedies such as back pay and benefits may be characterized as equitable when sought from an employer, the damages here were sought from the Union. Thus, Marshall held that the plaintiffs were requesting a legal remedy, and therefore, on the balance of the issues, were entitled to have their case heard by a jury. Restitution is the name given to a form of legal relief in which the plaintiff recovers something from the defendant that belongs, or should belong, to the plaintiff. ...

Brennan’s Concurrence

Justice Brennan concurred, but desired to simplify the test for determining a plaintiff’s Seventh Amendment rights. Specifically, he felt that it was unnecessary to examine the nature of the action itself, but rather to simply examine the type of relief requested by the plaintiff. If the plaintiff requested a legal remedy (such as monetary damages), Brennan would simply assume that the right to a jury trial existed, unless Congress had assigned the particular action to a non-Article III tribunal, and a jury trial would frustrate the intent of Congress. William J. Brennan, official portrait, 1976. ... In the United States, federal courts or tribunals can be classified as either Article I tribunals or Article III tribunals. ...

Brennan went on to criticize the Court’s historical analysis of traditional equitable and legal causes of action. Many of the statutory rights created by Congress are not analogous to anything which existed in the courts of 18th-century England, and judges lack the historical training to analyze such matters consistently. Different justices and historians have come to different conclusions as to what is analogous to a “legal” or “equitable” action. He concluded that the right to a jury trial was too important for the Court to allow fur such an uncertainty. In the law, a cause of action is a recognized kind of legal claim that a plaintiff pleads or alleges in a complaint to start a lawsuit. ...

Stevens’ Concurrence

Justice Stevens concurred separately, on similar grounds as Justice Brennan did. He felt that the Court’s attempt to find an 18th-century common law analogue to the collective-bargaining and fair representation actions in this case was a misguided historical judgment, and that the type of relief sought by the plaintiff was the relevant inquiry. He explained that it was perfectly rational to have members of the community—i.e. a jury of one’s peers—hear such a case. John Paul Stevens (born April 20, 1920) is an American jurist and the senior Associate Justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. ...

Dissent

Justice Kennedy dissented, arguing that the majority’s analogy to an equitable trust action should have been dispositive in this case. He further argued that the relationship between the union and its workers was more similar to the relationship between a trustee and a beneficiary than an attorney and his client, because a union had a duty of fair representation to all of its workers and did not normally be compelled to act as an agent by one beneficiary. He also stated that the relief sought by the plaintiffs was equitable in nature, because it sought to make the plaintiffs whole, and that the majority unnecessarily separated out the legal and equitable issues in this case. For other people of the same name, see Anthony Kennedy (disambiguation). ...

Justice Kennedy defended the historical comparison of the cause of action to the “suits at common law” available in 1791. He felt that to expand the right beyond what was available to plaintiffs at the time of the ratification of the Bill of Rights was nothing more than rewriting the Constitution, stating “[w]e cannot preserve a right existing in 1791 unless we look to history to identify it”. 494 U.S. at 593.

External link

• ↑ 494 U.S. 558 Full text of the opinion courtesy of Findlaw.com.