Mid Central Operating Engineers Health and Welfare Fund, Stephen Scott Trustee v. HoosierVac LLC

Summary

The United States District Court for the Southern District of Indiana granted the plaintiffs’ motion for summary judgment in an ERISA-related dispute over an employer’s obligation to comply with a benefit fund audit. The court held that HoosierVac LLC’s collective bargaining and participation agreements required it to provide requested payroll and vendor records relevant to determining the accuracy of its fund contributions. The court ordered the parties to submit a proposed permanent injunction and final judgment.

Holdings

1. The Fund was entitled to summary judgment because HoosierVac's governing agreements required it to comply with the Fund's audit requests, and HoosierVac admitted that it had not provided the requested documents.
2. The Fund was entitled to the requested payroll and vendor records because they were payroll records or other relevant employer records for determining the accuracy of HoosierVac's contributions.
3. HoosierVac's arguments did not create a genuine dispute of material fact because they relied on speculation and did not negate its admitted failure to comply with the document requests.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the Fund was entitled to summary judgment compelling HoosierVac to comply with the audit.
2. Whether the requested payroll and vendor records fell within the Fund's contractual audit authority.
3. Whether HoosierVac's alleged factual disputes, affirmative defenses, and claimed conspiracy or bad-faith audit defeated summary judgment.

Disposition

other