July 8, 2002—The US Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of Associated Builders and Contractors’ (ABC) member firm BE&K Construction, of Birmingham, Ala., in a case that affects the rights of employers to file lawsuits against labor unions. The court found that filing a suit is not unlawful retaliation under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), so long as the suit is reasonably based and is not filed solely with the motive of imposing the costs of litigation on the unions.
The ruling overturns an April 2001 finding by the US Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit that required BE&K to pay attorneys’ fees to California construction unions against which BE&K had filed a lawsuit.
For more information, contact ABC.
