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No. 96-2190
Plaintiffs, Appellants,
v.
Defendants, Appellees.
____________________
____________________
Before
____________________
and
Lopez______
____________________
May 5, 1997
____________________
Plaintiff-appellant
Eric
Delgado-Biaggi1
appellees
Air
Transport
brought
Reporting and
action
Transport Local
Workers
(collectively,
an
"the
Union
501
of
Union")
against
("Local
America,
under
the
denial of due
defendants-
501") and
AFL-CIO
the
("TWU")
Labor-Management
U.S.C.
401 et
__
arbitrary
The
district
the
court
Union, from
granted summary
which Delgado-Biaggi
judgment
in
favor of
now appeals.
Because the
Procedure
56(c)
denied
Delgado-Biaggi
meaningful
I.
I.
__
We
recite the
favorable
to
judgment.
See Hachikian
___ _________
pertinent facts
Delgado-Biaggi,
the
party
in the
light most
opposing
summary
504 (1st
Cir. 1996).
baggage handler.
One
____________________
1.
Fernandez-Zayas, and
their
For simplicity, we
-22
to a union
shift.2
shop-steward position
In September
for the
bag room,
second
for a first
In
October
1993,
shortly
after
Delgado-Biaggi
him a
letter
Tlasek,
from Local
which
501's
purported
"resignation" of
Executive Vice-President,
to
his shop
acknowledge
William
Delgado-Biaggi's
steward's position.
In November
that he
he had a
to
Local 501's
Delgado-Biaggi's
resignation under
bylaws.
Tlasek,
shift-change
in
turn, responded
automatically
that
effected
his
provides: "A Shop Steward who leaves the unit or shift he was
of the
Executive Board."
Dissatisfied
with
that
response,
Delgado-Biaggi
also to
no avail.
retained
Local
an attorney who, in
Delgado-Biaggi
as
steward.
due process in
The
leadership
a letter to
the removal of
of Local
501
____________________
2.
Shop
stewards are
union representatives
who personally
-33
concerning
remained unmoved.
attempted
to
In April
appeal
Executive Council.
the
appeal was
the letter.
by
1994, Delgado-Biaggi's
letter
to
TWU's
counsel
International
Delgado-Biaggi's failure to
Delgado-Biaggi did
personally file
On June
the
13, 1996,
after a desultory
beginning to
setting
of the
judgment.3
district
On
court
trial date
Friday, June
judge
in
by filing
28, the
chambers
a motion
for summary
parties met
for
with the
non-scheduled
conference.
his
During
intention
to
this meeting,
oppose
Delgado-Biaggi announced
the Union's
motion
for
summary
had
an opportunity
to
present his
opposing evidence,
the
____________________
3.
We note
that
the
Union submitted
the
June
17,
1996
The court
not first
of time.
See
___
leave to file
the
summary judgment
proponent must
obtain permission
to
file motion out of time where filing deadline "had long since
passed").
-44
change as a resignation
stated that
Delgado-Biaggi's shift
he represents."
The
order
concluded that
the shift
"none
of
the
411."
The
court did
argument on
the
motion.
Thereafter,
reconsider
along
Brignoni, a
stated
Delgado-Biaggi
with
sworn
former Chairman of
that
union
filed
declaration
Local 501.
stewardships are
motion
from
has
never
been
the
"never"
withdrawn
practice
in
case
been
resignation . . . .
where such
attempted
The
an interpretation
is
when
Mr.
removed by
Jorge
The declaration
[i]t
to
Eric
the
or
Delgado-Biaggi
deposition of
that
further
an
the Executive
submitted
Board had
steward position.
excerpt
never removed
Delgado-Biaggi
II.
II.
___
Discussion
Discussion
__________
the
-55
from
denied
On
court
judgment.
to respond to the
evidence sufficient to
upholding the
judgment and
that, given
Union's motion, he
preclude summary
of
before
the time
fixed for
the hearing."
Fed. R.
10 days
Civ. P.
56(c).
party at
We have interpreted
judgment.
See
___
Rule 56(c) to
to respond to a
allow an adverse
F.3d 53, 55
in the knowledge
which to
formulate
Melanson
________
Cir. 1981).
and prepare
have at least
their
best
ten days
in
opposition.");
F.2d 213,
214 (1st
judgment
motion."
v.
Arco
____
____________________
4.
relation
oral argument
in
connection
with
"hearing" in
the motion.
See
___
Cia.
____
-66
Fed.
R.
Civ.
P.
6(a), the
ten-day
requirement
afforded
1, to submit
July
his opposition.
1, before
evidence,
the
opportunity
window
Delgado-Biaggi
district
to contest
admonished, the
at 55.
summary
present his
denied
the motion.
and
the
weed out
F.3d
court
could
on the morning
him
As we
judgment
before
requisite
previously have
is not merely
province"
claims that do
to clear
We find that
"proper
of
summary
not warrant
a court's docket."
Delgado-Biaggi
of
opposing
the
dressing"
judgment is "to
By ruling
trial
Stella,
______
when it granted
exhausted
his
The
Union
accompanying the
persuade
us
overlooks
action"
that,
in any
the substantive
because
procedural
event,
delve into
the
the
flaws
and endeavors to
record reflects
no
In Stella, we "decline[d] to
______
aspects of plaintiffs'
"leapfrogging to
the merits
cause of
would display
____________________
5.
The error
is somewhat
amplified by the
undisputed fact
-77
that
the
peculiar
procedural
4 F.3d at 55.
Assuming
regime
the
district
court
See id. at
___ ___
56 n.4.
at 54
(reversing summary
in Stella.
______
judgment where,
on
See id.
___ ___
first day
of
and
afforded
argument).6
plaintiffs
thirty
minutes
to
prepare
for
56(c),
however, necessitates
"every
summary
judgment."
arguendo that
________
infirmities,
that we
Melanson,
________
afford Delgado-Biaggi
667 F.2d
at 214.
we cannot
say
that the
Assuming
to Rule 56(c)
court's noncompliance
The
Biaggi's motion
sworn
statements
to reconsider
submitted
with
comprise evidence
Delgado-
that Local
501 never
an automatic
____________________
6.
Stella as involving
______
our
observations concerning
not limited
55;
of summary judgment,
Rule 56(c)'s
requirements were
See 4 F.3d at
___
-88
resignation of a
shop steward's
event, the
Executive
within the
meaning of
Biaggi's
Board never
stewardship.
establish
discretion.7
crucial
Indeed, the
the
sufficiently
material fact.
Board
This
undisputed fact
in
raises
Thus,
its
the
met
to
exercise
judgment
of a
at oral
the record
undermines the
summary
question
discretion
Union conceded
had
any
terminate Delgado-
that
findings
that, in
exercised its
Article VII(a) to
to
position and
genuine
its
court's
order
issue
and
of
flawed proceedings
Furthermore,
by
the
Union's own
reasoning,
its
contention that
the
LMRDA
depends
ultimately, the
exercise its
on
the Executive
disputed question
discretion.
a claim under
Board's
powers
and,
met to
arguments also
addressed below.8
____________________
7.
Article
VII(a)
service of
appears
a shop
to
contemplate
the
uninterrupted
shifts, absent
some
8.
action.
29
U.S.C.
the hearing
triggered the
411(a)(4).
This
argument
determinations regarding
procedures and
the
the precise
The
district
court
never reached
this issue
and, given
the undeveloped
-99
Litigation, 45 F.3d
__________
harmful
error
certain that
been fully
significant
where
appellate
the merits
presented to
legal
issue,
of the
the
not
court
was not
"completely
summary judgment
district court"
squarely
(finding
issue had
and where
addressed
by
"a
the
district
court"
abbreviated summary
endorse
the
remained
unresolved
due
judgment proceedings).
district
court's
disregard
to
We
court's
are loath to
for
Rule
56(c)
procedural failure
the
appropriate solution.
See
___
proceedings is
III.
III.
____
Conclusion
Conclusion
__________
of the district
court and
reasons, we vacate
______
remand the
______
case for
the judgment
proceedings
Costs to appellants.
___________________
____________________
-1010