Davies
Davies v. Premier Chemicals, Inc.
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM *
The district court entertained jurisdiction over, and dismissed, this action, finding Davies’ state-law claim for tortious discharge in violation of public policy preempted by Section 301 of the Labor Management Relations Act. We reverse and remand.
Section 301 preempts state law breach of contract claims based on a collective bargaining agreement (“CBA”). Cramer v. Consolidated Freightways, Inc., 255 F.3d 683, 689 (9th Cir.2001) (en banc). A state may, however, provide substantive rights to workers that apply independent of agreements reached through collective bargaining. A state court suit seeking to vindicate these rights is preempted only if resolution of the claim is “substantially dependent” on interpretation of the CBA. Id. at 689-90 ; see Allis-Chalmers Corp. v. Lueck, 471 U.S. 202, 220 , 105 S.Ct. 1904 , 85 L.Ed.2d 206 (1985).
The district court found Davies’ action preempted by section 301 based on our statement in Sprewell v. Golden State Warriors, 231 F.3d 520 (9th Cir.2000), that “a state law claim is preempted by section 301 where the interpretation of the CBA is made necessary by an employer defense.” Id. at 529 (quotation marks and citation…