Howard v. Lockheed-Georgia Co‪.‬

In this action for breach of the duty of fair representation by the plaintiff's union, the district court entered summary judgment for defendants because plaintiff had not both filed and served his complaint within the six-month period required by the applicable statute of limitations, § 10(b) of the National Labor Relations Act, 29 U.S. C.A. § 160(b). We affirm. The United States Supreme Court, in DelCostello v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 462 U.S. 151, 103 S. Ct. 2281, 76 L. Ed. 2d 476 (1983), held that the six-month limitations period in § 10(b) governs claims of this kind against both employers and unions. The issue on this appeal is whether filing within the statutory period is sufficient, or whether the complaint must also be served within that period.