THOMAS J. FINLIN, CHARLES H. HOGENTOGLER AND DARRELL L. MIDDLETON, APPELLANTS,
v.
PENNSYLVANIA RAILROAD COMPANY

3d Cir. | 1961-04-10
No. 13393
288 F.2d 826 United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit (1961) Positive Treatment
Cited by 6 cases

AI-generated. These summaries, headnotes, and key points are machine-generated and may contain errors or omissions. Always verify against the full opinion text below. Not legal advice.


Holding

The court held that a trial de novo is not available for wage claims denied by the National Railroad Adjustment Board, and that the Board must be a party to the action for any relief to be granted.


Facts & Procedural History

Appellants' wage claims were denied by the National Railroad Adjustment Board. They sought a trial de novo in the district court, alleging a lack of p…

The full statement of facts, procedural history, and disposition for this case are member content.

Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence

© FLexlaw, Inc. — AI-generated enrichments are proprietary. All rights reserved.


Opinion of the Court
PER CURIAM.

PER CURIAM.

The appellants’ wage claims were denied by the National Railroad Adjustment Board. By their complaint they seek a trial de novo in the court below on the ground that the Board has not afforded them procedural due process. The court dismissed the action for lack of jurisdiction holding that the Board’s action was not reviewable and that the appellants were not entitled to a trial de novo and that the Board was a necessary party to the action. 1960, 187 F.Supp. 381.

The bases of the appellants’ claims are substantially similar to those asserted in Pennsylvania R. Co. v. Day, 1959, 360 U.S. 548, 79 S.Ct. 1322, 3 L.Ed.2d 1422. In the Day case and in Union Pacific R. Co. v. Price, 1959, 360 U.S. 601, 79 S.Ct. 1351, 3 L.Ed.2d 1460, the Supreme Court held that claims such as that at bar were subject to the exclusive primary jurisdiction of the Board and when denied could not be relitigated in a common-law damage suit. The court below was, therefore, correct in its conclusion that it could not afford the appellants a trial de novo.

The appellants contend that a United States district court can grant some form of relief where the Board’s action constitutes a taking of property without due process of law as is alleged here. See Union Pacific R. .Co. v. Price, supra, 360 U.S. at page 616, 79 S.Ct. at page 1359, Barnett v. Pennsylvania-Read ing Seashore Lines, 3 Cir., 1957, 245 F. 2d 579, 582. Even if it be assumed, however, that the appellants’ position in this respect is correct, binding relief could not be granted in a case such as that at bar unless the Board be made a party to the action. See Stranford v. Pennsylvania R. Co., D.C.D.N.J.1957, 155 F.Supp. 680, 690, citing Blackmar v. Guerre, 1952, 342 U.S. 512, 72 S.Ct. 410, 96 L.Ed. 534. Since the Board is not a party to this action the court below was correct in dismissing the amended complaint.

The judgment will be affirmed.


Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus


Citator

Cited By

Authorities Cited

Full citator, related cases, and AI research tools

Open in FLexlaw