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Access over workers' compensation decisions, including En Banc, Significant Panel Decisions, and writ-denied cases.

Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Apr 01, 2004

District Council 37 v. City of New York

This case involves an appeal of a Supreme Court judgment affirming a determination by the Board of Collective Bargaining of the City of New York. The petitioner public employee organizations (District Council 37 and Communications Workers of America) sought to annul the Board's decision regarding the City's unilateral implementation of a merit pay program for certain employees in the Human Resources Administration (JOS titles). The unions alleged the City violated the New York City Collective Bargaining Law by implementing the program without proper collective bargaining during a representation proceeding. The Board found the City had violated the NYC-CBL but denied the unions' request to compel the City to implement a similar merit pay program for non-JOS titles, citing inconsistency with its prior cease and desist order. The Supreme Court confirmed the Board's decision, and this judgment affirms that decision, finding the Board's actions to be reasonable and consistent with its statutory interpretation and that no new arguments warranted a different outcome.

Collective BargainingMerit Pay ProgramUnilateral ImplementationImproper PracticePublic Employee OrganizationRepresentation ProceedingStatus QuoAdministrative ReviewLabor DisputeAffirmation of Judgment
References
10
Case No. 2025 NY Slip Op 05448 [242 AD3d 441]
Regular Panel Decision
Oct 07, 2025

437 W. 36th St. LLC v. ZDJ W 37 LLC

The Appellate Division, First Department, affirmed the Supreme Court's decision to dismiss the plaintiff's causes of action for declaratory judgment based on adverse possession and for permanent injunctive relief, and denied the plaintiff's motion for a preliminary injunction. The plaintiff, 437 West 36th Street LLC, failed to sufficiently plead hostile use regarding a retaining wall abutting two properties, as its mutually beneficial nature suggests permissive use. Furthermore, the plaintiff did not demonstrate irreparable harm or a likelihood of success on the merits required for injunctive relief concerning interference with retaining walls or ongoing excavation work by the defendant, ZDJ W 37 LLC.

Adverse PossessionInjunctive ReliefRetaining WallProperty DisputeHostile PossessionIrreparable HarmPreliminary InjunctionDeclaratory JudgmentAppellate ReviewReal Property Law
References
5
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Pender v. District Council 37 of American Federation

Plaintiff Patricia A. Pender brought an employment discrimination suit against her former employer, District Council 37 (DC 37), alleging termination due to disability in violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and New York law. Pender, who had undergone a liver transplant, was terminated after a medical leave and a temporary modified assignment, with DC 37 claiming she could not perform the essential functions of her Council Representative job. An arbitrator, after an extensive grievance proceeding, had previously found in favor of DC 37, concluding Pender was unable to perform her duties even with accommodations. The court, affording significant weight to the arbitrator's decision and considering Pender's own admissions of disability, found insufficient evidence for a jury to conclude she could perform her job. Therefore, the court granted DC 37's motion for summary judgment, dismissing the complaint.

Employment DiscriminationDisability DiscriminationAmericans with Disabilities ActSummary JudgmentArbitrationCollective Bargaining AgreementReasonable AccommodationEssential Job FunctionsSocial Security DisabilityArbitrator's Decision Weight
References
19
Case No. 127943/02
Regular Panel Decision
Jan 29, 2003

Matter of Roberts v. City of New York

This case involves two separate Article 78 proceedings (Roberts I and Roberts II) brought by District Council 37 (DC-37) against the City of New York and its Department of Education (DOE). DC-37 challenged the layoff or termination of approximately 303 provisional civil service employees of the DOE, asserting violations of the City's Layoff Procedural Manual, unlawful displacement by WEP workers, and improper contracting out of services. Petitioners also argued in Roberts II that provisional employees who passed civil service exams were unfairly separated while other provisional employees who had not passed exams were retained. Justice Lewis Bart Stone ruled that the Layoff Manual did not create enforceable rights for employees, dismissed claims regarding WEP workers as speculative without specific violations, and found no legal restriction on the City's managerial decision to contract out services. The court also concluded that DC-37 failed to demonstrate arbitrary or capricious action by the City in the separation of provisional employees, thus dismissing both petitions.

LayoffsProvisional EmployeesArticle 78 ProceedingCivil Service LawUnion ContractBudgetary ConstraintsWork Experience Program (WEP)Contracting OutJudicial ReviewPublic Sector Employment
References
8
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Zuckerman v. Volume Services America, Inc.

Plaintiff Gail Zuckerman initiated a disability discrimination lawsuit under New York State law against her former employer, Volume Services America (VSA), and her union, Local 37. The defendants removed the case to federal court, arguing preemption by Section 301 of the Labor Relations Act and seeking dismissal based on the statute of limitations. The court denied VSA's summary judgment motion, ruling that Zuckerman's claims against the employer did not necessitate interpreting the collective bargaining agreement and thus were not preempted. Conversely, the court granted Local 37's motion, finding that the claims against the union amounted to a breach of the duty of fair representation, which is preempted by federal law and time-barred by a six-month limitation period. Consequently, the case against VSA was remanded to the Supreme Court of the State of New York, County of Queens, as federal jurisdiction no longer applied to that portion of the dispute.

Disability DiscriminationLabor Relations ActSection 301 PreemptionCollective Bargaining AgreementStatute of LimitationsSummary JudgmentDuty of Fair RepresentationRetaliatory DischargeHostile Work EnvironmentConstructive Discharge
References
23
Case No. 2024 NY Slip Op 06187 [233 AD3d 761]
Regular Panel Decision
Dec 11, 2024

Jaimes-Gutierrez v. 37 Raywood Dr., LLC

The plaintiff, Manuel Jaimes-Gutierrez, appealed an order from the Supreme Court, Rockland County, which denied his motion for summary judgment on liability for violations of Labor Law §§ 240 (1) and 241 (6), and granted the defendants' cross-motion to dismiss the complaint. Jaimes-Gutierrez sustained injuries after falling from pull-down attic stairs while installing an alarm system at a construction site. The Appellate Division, Second Department, modified the Supreme Court's order, finding that the pull-down attic stairs served as a safety device under Labor Law § 240 (1) and that their failure violated Labor Law § 241 (6) by not meeting safety specifications under 12 NYCRR 23-1.21 (b) (1). Consequently, the Appellate Division granted the plaintiff's motion for summary judgment on these Labor Law violations and denied the defendants' cross-motion to dismiss those specific causes of action, affirming the remainder of the order with costs to the plaintiff.

Labor LawScaffold LawLadder AccidentConstruction Site InjuryPersonal InjurySummary JudgmentAppellate DivisionNondelegable DutyAbsolute LiabilityAttic Stairs
References
16
Case No. 2018 NY Slip Op 03220
Regular Panel Decision
May 03, 2018

Matter of City of New York v. District Council 37

The Appellate Division, First Department, affirmed an order from the Supreme Court, New York County, which granted the City of New York's petition to vacate an arbitration award. The Court concluded that the arbitrator exceeded their authority by modifying the collective bargaining agreement, a practice explicitly prohibited by the contract. Specifically, the arbitrator's decision wrongly expanded the eligibility for an assignment differential, which the agreement had strictly limited to workers at a particular facility. This ruling reinforces that an arbitrator's award must be derived from the contract and not from considerations outside its scope, especially when such actions violate strong public policy or statutory limitations on arbitral power.

arbitration award vacationcollective bargaining agreementarbitrator's powerscontract modificationpublic policy violationassignment differentialCPLR article 75appellate reviewlabor lawNew York courts
References
4
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision

Commer v. District Council 37, Local 375

Plaintiff Roy Commer filed an action against Civil Service Technical Guild, Local 375, and District Council 37 (collectively, 'Defendants'), alleging two primary claims: (1) that the Local Union improperly amended its Constitution, violating the AFSCME Constitution, and (2) that the Defendants violated the Labor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act (LMRDA) by failing to certify his election as president. Defendants moved to dismiss the action for lack of subject matter jurisdiction. The court granted the motion to dismiss, determining that the Election Claim was preempted by Title IV of the LMRDA, which designates the Secretary of Labor as the exclusive enforcer for post-election challenges, thereby precluding private action under Title I. Regarding the Amendment Claim, the court found that Commer had chosen to pursue internal union remedies with the International Union’s Judicial Panel and had not yet exhausted them, thus depriving the court of subject matter jurisdiction.

Labor Union DisputeUnion Election ChallengeLMRDA PreemptionSubject Matter JurisdictionExhaustion of RemediesInternal Union GovernanceUnion Constitution AmendmentOfficer Election CertificationFederal Court JurisdictionLabor-Management Reporting and Disclosure Act
References
16
Case No. MISSING
Regular Panel Decision
Jan 17, 2006

Patrolmen's Benevolent Ass'n of the City of New York, Inc. v. District Council 37, AFSCME, AFL-CIO

This case involves a judgment from the Supreme Court, New York County, affirming an earlier arbitrator’s award. The judgment, entered on January 17, 2006, by Justice Michael D. Stallman, confirmed an arbitrator's award dated September 2, 2004. The petitioners, who were not parties to the original arbitration between District Council 37 and the City of New York, sought to vacate this award. The court determined that the petitioners lacked standing, either statutorily or under common law, to seek the vacatur. Their claims of potential harm were deemed too speculative, especially since there was no evidence suggesting that any of their members would face layoffs or demotions as a result of the award. Consequently, the judgment dismissing the petition was unanimously affirmed by the appellate court.

Arbitration AwardStandingVacatur PetitionAppellate ReviewNew York LawSupreme CourtLabor DisputeDismissalAffirmed JudgmentCPLR
References
4
Case No. ADJ-4279077 (SDO 0317244)
Regular
Jun 09, 2016

TINA BARONI vs. CITY OF OCEANSIDE, CALIFORNIA INSURANCE GUARANTEE ASSOCIATION for RELIANCE NATIONAL INDEMNITY COMPANY

The Workers' Compensation Appeals Board (WCAB) issued a Decision After Removal ordering the striking of three sets of documents from the EAMS record. These documents pertained to San Diego Superior Court Case Number 37-2016-00006537-CU-IC-CTL and were submitted without objection. The WCAB previously issued a Notice of Intention to Strike these documents, stating they would be removed unless good cause to the contrary was shown. No objections were received from the parties or the identified attorneys.

Workers' Compensation Appeals BoardRemovalStriking DocumentsEAMS recordCalifornia Insurance Guarantee AssociationReliance National Indemnity CompanyLiquidationSan Diego Superior CourtObjectionGood Cause
References
1
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