Furthermore, even the 2018 grievance, laced with details of the bribery scandal, was deemed a mere echo of past complaints. “These new allegations merely illuminated what was already known – the UAW’s conflicting interests with the plaintiffs,” Judge Larsen observed.
Equally, the four-year statute for the engineers’ RICO claims offered no refuge. The panel underscored that the engineers were cognizant as early as 2011 or 2012 of FCA’s alleged breach of the collective bargaining agreement, setting the statute’s clock in motion.
“Equity favors the vigilant, not those who sleep on their rights,” Judge Larsen remarked, underscoring the plaintiffs’ failure to act promptly and the court’s subsequent dismissal of any equitable tolling to rescue their RICO claims.
A Saga of Corruption and Consequence
This legal battle stems from a broader corruption investigation into FCA by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Michigan. Accusations flew as company executives were charged with diverting funds meant for the UAW-Fiat Chrysler National Training Center to union officials, in exchange for bargaining concessions.
