Charme v. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
Charme v. International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers
Opinion of the Court
MEMORANDUM
Appellees contend that Du Charme was a union officer whose terms of employ
Section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act, 29 U.S.C. § 185(a), completely preempts “most state-law actions that require interpretation of labor agreements.” Balcorta v. Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp., 208 F.3d 1102, 1108 (9th Cir. 2000) (citation omitted). Though a union’s constitution and bylaws are labor agreements for purposes of § 301, Ackley v. Western Conference of Teamsters, 958 F.2d 1463, 1476-77 (9th Cir. 1992), the mere fact that IBEW’s constitution and Local 45’s bylaws advert to the position of assistant business manager is insufficient to require “interpretation” of those agreements, particularly in the absence of any evidence that Du Charme was a union member or officer. See Balcorta, 208 F.3d at 1108-09. Appellees have failed to overcome the “strong presumption against removal jurisdiction” by failing to demonstrate that Du Charme’s employment was subject to the terms of IBEW’s constitution or Local 45’s bylaws. Gaus v. Miles, Inc., 980 F.2d 564, 566 (9th Cir. 1992) (internal quotation marks omitted). Accordingly, the district court erred in denying Du Charme’s motion for remand.
The judgment in favor of Appellees is reversed. We remand with instructions for the district court to remand this action to the Superior Court of the State of California, County of San Mateo.
REVERSED AND REMANDED.
This disposition is not appropriate for publication and may not be cited to or by the courts
Reference
- Full Case Name
- Frank Du CHARME, Plaintiff-counter-defendant-Appellant v. INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF ELECTRICAL WORKERS Cecil Wynn, International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 45, Defendant-counter-claimant-Appellee
- Status
- Published