Painters District Council No. 58 et al v. APCI Holdings, Inc.

Filing 23

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER : IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiffs motion is GRANTED. ECF No. 20 . A Judgment against Defendant in the amount of $38,871.19 shall accompany this Memorandum and Order. IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiffs shall file any request for attorney fees no later than December 7, 2018. Signed by District Judge Audrey G. Fleissig on 11/21/2018. (KCB)

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
EASTERN DISTRICT OF MISSOURI
EASTERN DIVISION
PAINTERS DISTRICT COUNCIL 58,
et al.,
Plaintiffs,
v.
APCI HOLDINGS, INC.,
Defendant.

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No. 4:18-CV-00038-AGF

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER
This matter is before the Court on Plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment
against Defendant APCI Holdings, Inc., under the Employee Retirement Income Security
Act. 29 U.S.C. § 1132. ECF No. 20. Plaintiffs are the union and trustees of various
employee benefit plans. Defendant is an employer bound by a collective bargaining
agreement requiring it to submit contributions to the plans. In January 2018, Plaintiffs
filed this action to recover delinquent contributions and liquidated damages owed to them
pursuant to the terms of that agreement. 29 U.S.C. § 1145.
Defendant timely answered the complaint and admitted that it was a signatory to
the agreement. ECF No. 6, ¶ 31. This Court issued a Case Management Order requiring
the parties to conduct an audit and file status reports advising the Court of their efforts to
resolve the matter. ECF No. 11. Plaintiffs filed such reports in July and August 2018
informing the Court that Defendant had supplied the requisite payroll records and an
audit was in progress. ECF Nos. 15, 19. Upon completion of the audit, Plaintiffs filed

the present motion, along with supporting documentation, seeking summary judgment
against Defendant in the amounts of $31,624.86 for delinquent contributions, $6,324.88
for liquidated damages, and $921.45 for audit costs, for a total of $38,871.19. Defendant
did not file any opposition to the motion, and the time to do so has passed.
Summary judgment is appropriate when, viewing the facts in the light most
favorable to the non-movant, there are no genuine issues of material fact and the movant
is entitled to judgment as a matter of law. Metro. Prop. & Cas. Ins. Co. v. Calvin, 802
F.3d 933, 937 (8th Cir. 2015). Where the record, taken as a whole, could not lead a
rational trier of fact to find for the non-moving party, there is no genuine issue for trial.
Torgerson v. City of Rochester, 643 F.3d 1031, 1042 (8th Cir. 2011). Rule 56(c)
“mandates the entry of summary judgment, after adequate time for discovery and upon
motion, against a party who fails to make a showing sufficient to establish the existence
of an element essential to that party’s case, and on which that party will bear the burden
of proof at trial. Duluth, Winnipeg & Pac. Ry. Co. v. City of Orr, 529 F.3d 794, 797 (8th
Cir. 2008).
Plaintiffs have submitted uncontroverted evidence supporting their motion,
namely the collective bargaining agreement obligating Defendant to remit dues and
submit contributions to the Plaintiff funds, and affidavits and exhibits reflecting the
amounts owed. ECF No. 20-2-6. “The findings of plaintiffs’ accountants are
presumptively valid,” and the “burden is on the employer to produce evidence countering
the audit.” Greater St. Louis Const. Laborers Welfare Fund v. H2K Const., LLC,
4:09CV1306MLM, 2010 WL 2640192, at *1 (E.D. Mo. June 28, 2010). Defendant has
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supplied no argument or evidence suggesting the existence of a genuine issue of fact
precluding summary judgment. Consequently, the Court finds that the record leaves no
issue of fact in dispute, and Plaintiffs are entitled to summary judgment as a matter of
law.
Accordingly,
IT IS HEREBY ORDERED that Plaintiffs’ motion is GRANTED. ECF No. 20.
A Judgment against Defendant in the amount of $38,871.19 shall accompany this
Memorandum and Order.
IT IS FURTHER ORDERED that Plaintiffs shall file any request for attorney
fees no later than December 7, 2018.

AUDREY G. FLEISSIG
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE
Dated this 21st day of November, 2018.

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