United States District Court, E.D. Michigan, Southern Division
TRUSTEES OF THE DETROIT CARPENTERS FRINGE BENEFIT FUNDS, Plaintiffs,
v.
ANDRUS ACOUSTICAL, INC., a Michigan Corporation, STERLING MILLWORK, INC., a Michigan Corporation, ALAN ANDRUS, an individual, and MARK BOLITHO, an individual, jointly and severally, Defendants.
FINDINGS OF FACT AND CONCLUSIONS OF LAW FOLLOWING
BENCH TRIAL ON DAMAGES
Paul
D. Borman, United States District Judge
On
March 22, 2017, following a four-day bench trial on the issue
of liability, this Court entered its Findings of Fact and
Conclusions of Law, awarding judgment in favor of Plaintiffs
on their claim for unpaid fringe benefits against Defendants
Andrus Acoustical, Inc. (“Andrus”), Sterling
Millwork Inc. (“Sterling”), Alan Andrus and Mark
Bolitho, under an alter ego theory of liability. Trustees
of the Detroit Carpenters Fringe Benefit Funds v.
Andrus Acoustical, et al., No. 11-cv-14656, 2016 WL
1125594 (E.D. Mich. March 22, 2016). The Court found the
Defendants jointly and severally responsible for the unpaid
fringe benefit contributions based upon the fraudulent
conduct of the Sterling/Andrus alter ego entity. (ECF No. 87,
Amended Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law)
(“Liability FFCs”.)
Following
the parties' unsuccessful efforts to settle on damages
following the liability ruling, the Court conducted a two-day
bench trial, on July 17-18, 2017, on damages. The parties
filed Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law on
damages, and Plaintiffs filed a Reply. (ECF Nos. 105, 109,
110.) Following are the Court's Findings of Fact and
Conclusions of Law on the issue of damages.
A.
Stipulations and Matters Still in Dispute
1.
Plaintiffs seek damages in the amount of $1, 147, 534.36,
representing unpaid fringe benefit contributions in the
amount of $297, 567.10 and prejudgment interest in the amount
of $424, 983.63, plus $424, 983.63 - the greater of
liquidated damages of 20% of outstanding benefits or interest
on the unpaid contributions - plus a reasonable attorney fee
yet to be determined. Plaintiffs' damages are based on
unpaid fringe benefits on the following eight (8) jobs,
performed by the Sterling/Andrus alter ego, that were the
subject of extensive testimony and evidence during liability
phase of the trial: Laurel Park, Mitchell's Ocean
Club/Ocean Prime, Flagstar Bank Ann Arbor, Plum Market Ann
Arbor, Plum Market West Bloomfield, Teriyaki Experience,
Minute Suites Philadelphia, Detroit Metropolitan Airport
Phases I-IV (“Detroit Airport”). (ECF No. 103,
Damages Trial Tr. Vol. I, p. 10:1-11; Plaintiffs' Damages
Trial Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
(“Pls.' DPFCs.”) ¶ 26.) Each of these
jobs, apart from Mitchell's/Ocean Prime, is identified on
Plaintiff's Damages Trial Exhibit (“Pls.'
DTE”) 154.
2. The
parties have stipulated, for purposes of calculating damages,
that the “field” carpentry and
“millwork” carpentry audits, set forth in
Plaintiffs' Damages Trial Exhibits (“Pls.'
DTE”) 205 and 206 respectively, are properly calculated
and that the prejudgment interest as calculated by Plaintiffs
(Pls.' DTE 211) is properly calculated. (ECF No. 102,
Stipulations of Parties ¶¶ 1-3, Exs. A-C.) Although
the parties dispute whether these amounts are properly
awarded under the Court's alter ego liability ruling, the
audits establish that the following amounts, if found by the
Court to be due and owing, are properly calculated:
• Laurel Park Food Court
$35, 868.37 (carpentry)
$22, 185.47 (carpentry millwork)
$87, 842.42 (prejudgment Interest)
• Mitchell's Ocean Club/Ocean Prime
$43, 014.13 (carpentry millwork)
$65, 080.29 (prejudgment interest)
• Flagstar Bank Ann Arbor
$7, 062.76 (carpentry)
$244.49 (carpentry millwork)
$11, 056.74 (prejudgment interest)
• Plum Market Ann Arbor
$451.41 (carpentry)
$8111.72 (carpentry millwork)
$12, 957.04 (prejudgment interest)
• Plum Market West Bloomfield
$91, 842.95 (carpentry)
$35, 393.92 (carpentry millwork)
$171, 714.47 (prejudgment interest)
• Teriyaki Experience
$1994.76 (carpentry millwork)
$1929.45 (prejudgment interest)
• Minute Suites Philadelphia
$5974.34 (carpentry millwork)
$5781.74 (prejudgment interest)
• Detroit Airport Phase 1
$6, 794.97 (carpentry)
$14, 322.97 (carpentry millwork)
$31, 753.63 (prejudgment interest)
• Detroit Airport Phase 2
$8996.93 (carpentry)
$1839.71 (carpentry millwork)
$16, 511.14 (prejudgment interest)
• Detroit Airport Phase 3
$2859.02 (carpentry)
$4895.75 (carpentry millwork)
$11, 733.89 (prejudgment interest)
• Detroit Airport Phase 4
$5030.96 (carpentry)
$682.47 (carpentry millwork)
$8622.82 (prejudgment interest)
3. The
Defendants concede that, based on their interpretation of the
Court's alter ego liability holding, the Defendants would
owe the union fringe benefits in the amount of $66, 613.01 on
“field” carpentry work, i.e. carpentry work done
at the actual physical location of the construction project,
performed on the Laurel Park, Flagstar Bank, and Detroit
Airport projects. (ECF No. 107, Defendants' Damages Phase
Proposed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law
(“Defs.' DPFCs”) ¶ 3; Defendants'
Damages Trial Exhibit (“Defs.' DTE” 603.)
4.
Defendants disagree, based on their interpretation of the
Court's alter ego liability holding, that fringe benefits
are due on any “millwork” carpentry, i.e.
carpentry work done at the Sterling mill, performed on the
Laurel Park, Flagstar Bank, or Detroit Airport jobs under the
Court's alter ego holding. (Defs.' DPFCs ¶ 4.)
5.
Defendants further disagree, based on their interpretation of
the Court's alter ego liability holding, that
any fringe benefits, either for field carpentry or
carpentry millwork, are due on any of the remaining five (5)
jobs: Mitchell's Ocean Club/Ocean Prime, Plum Market Ann
Arbor, Plum Market West Bloomfield, Teriyaki Experience, or
Minute Suites Philadelphia. (Defs.' DPFCs ¶ 4.)
6. The
Court finds, as summarized below and as clearly set forth in
its Amended Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law from the
liability phase of the trial, that the Court's
Sterling/Andrus alter ego liability holding applies to each
of these 8 jobs and applies to all covered carpentry
work as defined in the Andrus Collective Bargaining Agreement
(“CBA”), whether performed by the Sterling/Andrus
alter ego entity in the field or in the mill, on each of
these eight jobs. There is no dispute that the nature of both
the field and millwork carpentry at issue in this action
would be “covered carpentry work” under the
Andrus CBA.
B.
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