In a gripping development reminiscent of a high-stakes chess game, the Sixth Circuit Court made a decisive move in the ongoing legal saga surrounding a group of engineers against corporate giants. On Wednesday, the court upheld a prior decision, essentially slamming the brakes on the engineers’ RICO suit against former United Auto Workers (UAW) leaders and Fiat Chrysler executives. The engineers accused these corporate titans of orchestrating a long-standing bribery plot that corroded the very fabric of their labor contract.
A trio of judges, unanimous in their decision, echoed U.S. District Judge Robert H. Cleland’s finding. The lawsuit, brought forward by 47 engineers from Fiat Chrysler’s elite Advance Manufacturing Engineering Powertrain division, was struck down as time-barred. These engineers, with their careers entwined in the labyrinth of auto engineering, charged forward with claims under both the Labor Management Relations Act and the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.
The Clock Strikes Against Justice
“Plaintiffs unearthed their grievances as early as 2011, stumbling upon the bribery web in July 2017, yet they stalled until October 2020 to raise their legal voice, leaving the delay unexplained,” U.S. Circuit Judge Joan L. Larsen penned in the ruling. This hesitation, it seems, was the fatal flaw in their legal strategy.
