Locals 302 and 612 of the International Union of Operating Engineers Construction Industry Health and Security Fund et al v. Alaska Industrial LLC

Filing 9

ORDER granting plaintiff's 6 Motion for Default Judgment by Judge Richard A Jones. (AD)

HONORABLE RICHARD A. JONES

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
WESTERN DISTRICT OF WASHINGTON
AT SEATTLE

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LOCALS 302 AND 612 et al.,
Plaintiff,

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ALASKA INDUSTRIAL, LLC,

ORDER

Defendant.

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CASE NO. C15-106RAJ

v.

This matter comes before the court on Plaintiff’s motion for default judgment.

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Dkt. # 6. The court GRANTS the motion and directs the clerk to enter default judgment

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as directed at the conclusion of this order.

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The court’s role in reviewing a motion for default judgment is not ministerial. It

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must accept all well-pleaded allegations of the complaint as fact, except facts related to

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the amount of damages. TeleVideo Sys., Inc. v. Heidenthal, 826 F.2d 915, 917-18 (9th

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Cir. 1987). Where those facts establish a defendant’s liability, the court has discretion,

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not an obligation, to enter a default judgment. Aldabe v. Aldabe, 616 F.2d 1089, 1092

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(9th Cir. 1980); Alan Neuman Productions, Inc. v. Albright, 862 F.2d 1388, 1392 (9th

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Cir. 1988). The plaintiff must submit evidence supporting a claim for a particular sum of

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damages. TeleVideo Sys., 826 F.2d at 917-18; see also Fed. R. Civ. P. 55(b)(2)(B). If the

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plaintiff cannot prove that the sum it seeks is “a liquidated sum or capable of

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ORDER – 1

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mathematical calculation,” the court must hold a hearing or otherwise ensure that the

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damage award is appropriate. Davis v. Fendler, 650 F.2d 1154, 1161 (9th Cir. 1981).

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Plaintiff is the authorized administrative agent for and assignee of a union trust

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fund. The evidence it has presented establishes that Defendant failed to pay contributions

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and dues owed to the trust. Dkt. # 6, ¶ 12. The evidence demonstrates that the amount of

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liability for the failure to pay contributions is $30,469.13, the liability amount for failure

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to pay dues is $2,110.30, plus interest in the amount of $251.32. The trust contribution

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terms, to which Defendant consented, also entitles Plaintiff to liquidated damages of 12%

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of the liability, or $3,656.30 in this case.

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In addition, Plaintiff requests attorney fees and costs. Although Plaintiff’s

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evidence of attorney fees includes the hourly fees of non-attorneys, Plaintiff has

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established that its counsel does not incorporate non-attorney work into his hourly rate,

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and has established that counsel actually bills Plaintiff for the work of non-attorneys.

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Dkt. #6, ¶14; Dkt. #6-1. In accordance with Trustees of the Const. Indus. & Laborers

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Health & Welfare Trust v. Redland Ins. Co., 460 F.3d 1253, 1256-57 (9th Cir. 2006), the

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court awards the hourly fees of both Plaintiff’s counsel and counsel’s hourly-billing

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support staff. The court finds that Plaintiff’s evidence supports an attorney fee award of

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$403.50 and costs of $468.25.

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The clerk shall enter default judgment in accordance with this order.

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DATED this 15th day of October, 2015.

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A

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The Honorable Richard A. Jones
United States District Judge

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ORDER – 2