## Facts

- The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) found that Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, AFL-CIO, Local 990 (the union) threatened employees that they would lose their jobs if they did not join the union.
- The NLRB issued an order against the union based on those unfair labor practice findings.
- The NLRB petitioned the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit for enforcement of its order; the union opposed enforcement.
- The Fifth Circuit resolved the enforcement request by a per curiam, one-word disposition: “ENFORCED,” citing Fifth Circuit Local Rule 21.
- Although the disposition was summary, the court published an accompanying opinion (by Chief Judge Brown) explaining the court’s Rule 21 screening and summary-calendar process and stating that the purpose of the published discussion was not to address the merits of the labor dispute.

## Issues

1. Whether the Fifth Circuit should enforce the NLRB’s order against the union based on the Board’s finding that the union threatened employees with job loss if they did not join.
2. Whether, under Fifth Circuit Local Rule 21, the court may dispose of an enforcement proceeding by a summary, one-word order when the case presents no substantial question, while separately explaining the court’s screening procedure.

## Decision

- The Fifth Circuit enforced the NLRB’s order.  
- The court issued a per curiam, one-word judgment—“ENFORCED”—under Local Rule 21.  
- The published opinion accompanying the judgment explained the court’s summary disposition practice and emphasized that the court was not writing to discuss the merits of the underlying labor controversy.

## Legal Principles

- A court of appeals may summarily dispose of certain cases under a valid local rule when the appeal (or opposition to enforcement) presents no substantial question requiring a full written merits opinion.
- In NLRB enforcement proceedings, the court’s enforcement judgment leaves the Board’s order in effect as issued; a summary enforcement disposition reflects the court’s conclusion that no substantial basis exists to deny enforcement.
- The published discussion in this case primarily concerns appellate administration—how and why the Fifth Circuit uses a screening/summary-calendar process—rather than announcing new National Labor Relations Act doctrine on union threats.

## Conclusion

The Fifth Circuit enforced the NLRB’s order against Local 990 through a one-word Rule 21 disposition and used the published opinion to describe and justify its summary-calendar and screening process, rather than to provide a merits analysis of the union’s job-loss threats.


National Labor Relations Board v. Amalgamated Clothing Workers of America, AFL-CIO, Local 990, 430 F.2d 966 (1970)