Protection for union officials covers staff attorneys

Trial Notebook

By Steven P. Garmisa

Hoey & Farina

Posted December 28, 2020 11:12 AM

After two trips to the U.S. Supreme Court about a 1903 boycott of a Connecticut hat manufacturer that used scab labor to break a strike, the Danbury Hatters case ended with the distressing spectacle of the company using a big antitrust judgment against 240 union members to crush the defendants by grabbing their bank accounts and houses. Lingering memories of this episode eventually prompted Congress to enact Section 301(b) of the Labor Management Relations Act, which has been interpreted as insulating union officers, staff …

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