Bowers v. Transportacion Maritima Mexicana, SA, 901 F. 2d 258 - Court of Appeals, 2nd Circuit 1990

Transportacion Maritima Mexicana, S.A. ( TMM ) appeals from a judgment entered June 29, 1989, in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York (Owen, J.), finding that TMM was an employer subject to withdrawal liability under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ( ERISA ), 29 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1461 (1982 & Supp. V 1987), as amended by the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act ( MPPAA ), 29 U.S.C. §§ 1381-1453 (1982 & Supp. V 1987). The district court awarded the NYSA-ILA Pension Trust Fund (the Fund ) damages and interest for withdrawal liability payments it had demanded from the due date of the first installment until the date of judgment, directed arbitration of the total amount due, and ordered that future quarterly withdrawal liability payments be made by TMM until the total amount due is determined through arbitration. On appeal, TMM challenges the district court\u27s finding that it was an employer subject to withdrawal liability under the MPPAA, and asserts that the court erred when it entered judgment in an amount calculated from the due date of the first installment, rather than from the date TMM received notice of its withdrawal liability. The Fund cross-appeals, asserting that TMM waived its right to arbitrate the dispute, and that the district court erred in deciding that the Fund\u27s motion for liquidated damages, attorney\u27s fees, and costs was premature. The district court denied TMM\u27s motion to stay arbitration pending this appeal. For the reasons that follow, we affirm the judgment of the district court insofar as it found that TMM was an employer 260*260 subject to withdrawal liability, modify the judgment to the extent it required arbitration, and remand to the district court for the limited purpose of determining the amount of TMM\u27s liability