Communications Workers of America, an Unincorporated Association v. Pacific Northwest Bell Telephone Company, a Washington Corporation

This case is before us for the second time. Appellee seeks a declaration that it has no obligation under the terms of its collective bargaining agreement to submit to arbitration a specific dispute between the parties. On the first trial of the ease the District Court held that the dispute was one which the parties were, under their agreement, required to arbitrate. Pacific Tel. & Tel. Co. v. Communications Workers of America (D.C.Or.1961) 199 F.Supp. 689 . In so ruling it excluded bargaining history from evidence. We held this to be error for the reason that the tendered evidence went not to the merits of the underlying dispute but to the judicial issue of arbitrability and thus did not result in a judicial usurpation of the arbitrator’s function. Pacific Northwest Bell Tel. Co. v. Communications Workers of America (9 Cir. 1962) 310 F.2d 244 . We remanded for a new trial.

Following a new trial the District Court has concluded:

This determination is amply supported by the findings.

Appellant’s principal contention upon this appeal is that we should, in the light of recent decisions from other circuits, re-examine our earlier decision requiring the District Court to admit the…