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SAG President’s Appeal Denied
13 February 2009 4:17 PM, PST
Friday the 13th proved unlucky for SAG president Alan Rosenberg and his co-plaintiffs in their lawsuit against their own union. It turns out that three days ago, they filed an appeal of the Superior Court’s denial of their request for a temporary restraining order that would have blocked negotiations with the studios. Today, that appeal was denied.
For those into legal details, the appeal was in the form of a writ of mandamus, essentially a special form of appeal. Rosenberg and his fellow Membership First plaintiffs 1st VP Anne-Marie-Johnson and board members Diane Ladd and Kent McCord can still file an ordinary appeal of the denial, and they can still continue to press their lawsuit in the Superior Court as well. Both of those processes would take months.
However, although the “Gang of Four” can continue the lawsuit ad nauseam, wasting SAG members’ money in the process, they’re unlikely to gain traction.
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noreply@blogger.com (Jonathan Handel)
SAG-amptp Negotiations Still on Despite Lawyers’ Threat
11 February 2009 8:43 PM, PST
An AMPTP (studio alliance) spokesman confirmed to me today that negotiations between the studios and SAG are still on for next Tuesday and Wednesday, as previously announced, despite a threat from SAG President Alan Rosenberg’s lawyers that any deal reached would be null, void and not binding on SAG members.
That threat, which was contained in a letter Friday that came to light yesterday, arises out the lawsuit filed by Rosenberg and his fellow MembershipFirst plaintiffs 1st VP Anne-Marie-Johnson and board members Diane Ladd and Kent McCord against their own union. To date, the suit has gotten no traction, with a judge denying the plaintiffs’ request for an injunction that would have prevented the negotiations. So, Rosenberg and his allies attempted to obtain via a threatening letter what they haven’t gotten via a lawsuit. That effort too appears to be unsuccessful.
Although the letter indicates that the plaintiffs are appealing the denial,
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noreply@blogger.com (Jonathan Handel)
SAG & AMPTP Confirm Meetings for Next Tues-Weds
10 February 2009 5:53 PM, PST
SAG and the AMPTP confirmed in a joint press release today that they will meet at AMPTP HQ next Tuesday and Wednesday, February 17-18, as was widely expected. In my view, negotiations will probably continue over a period of a few weeks, as a significant number of issues remain.
Meanwhile, MembershipFirst released a statement from key leader and SAG 1st VP Anne-Marie Johnson that shows they intend to torpedo a deal if possible. Specifically, the statement implies that any deal reached will probably be “disastrous” and will probably not be one “that can be endorsed by an overwhelming majority of the national board and most importantly, by over 50% of the membership.” Nice to know that Mf still believes in unity.
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noreply@blogger.com (Jonathan Handel)
Pro-Deal Rally at SAG
9 February 2009 10:50 PM, PST
Over 100 crew members and others rallied in front of SAG HQ in La today, urging the union and the studios to make a deal. The rally, organized largely by camera operators Jon Philion and Andrew Rowlands and cinematographers Ed Gutentag and Bruce McCleery under the rubric “Back to Work,” was joined by another gathering consisting of several dozen Membership First supporters, who protested what they anticipate will be an unpalatable deal.
That protest, whose ranks included Scott Wilson and David Clennon, took place even though negotiations have not yet recommenced, let alone a deal negotiated. Back to Work and Mf have indicated they both intend to rally again next Tuesday, Feb. 17th at the AMPTP (studio alliance), when talks are widely expected to start.
In other SAG news, ousted (and re-ousted) National Executive Director Doug Allen is back, not in person, but in the form of an “open letter” supporting SAG President Alan Rosenberg.
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noreply@blogger.com (Jonathan Handel)
SAG Board Re-Do Successful
9 February 2009 9:45 AM, PST
The SAG Board met yesterday and re-affirmed actions already taken in writing two weeks earlier: the ouster of former National Executive Director Doug Allen and the replacement of the negotiating team. That action paves the way for resumed contract talks with the studios, which are expected to start next Tuesday and Wednesday, Feb. 17-18, according to sources and other media reports. Negotiations will probably continue over a period of a few weeks, as a significant number of issues remain.
The Board’s vote would appear to render moot a lawsuit filed last week by SAG president Alan Rosenberg. However, according to a source at yesterday’s board meeting, Rosenberg’s Membership First faction argued that yesterday’s board meeting was itself invalid because it was called by the interim National Executive Director, David White, who was appointed by the written document that Rosenberg’s lawsuit deems to be invalid as well.
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noreply@blogger.com (Jonathan Handel)
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