UAW no longer will pay ex-president's attorney fees

The leadership of the UAW has decided it will no longer pay for an attorney for former President Dennis Williams, who has been implicated, although not charged, in the corruption scandal.

The union's International Executive Board voted unanimously this week "to terminate any and all further payment of attorney's fees related to the government's investigation, effective immediately," the UAW said in a news release Friday.

A federal filing for the union for 2019 lists $320,912 in legal fees for Williams. It wasn't clear how much would have been paid in 2020. Messages to his attorney were not returned. 

The move to cut payments for Williams' legal fees follows an earlier decision to have him repay more than $56,000 "spent for housing and related travel expenses while he was in office that were determined to be personal in nature and should not have been charged to the UAW," the union said.

Williams has been listed in federal court documents filed by prosecutors as an unnamed union official and identified to the Free Press by a source.  The documents allege he and other union officials embezzled $1.5 million in union funds.

Williams' successor as president, Gary Jones, resigned in disgrace last year and awaits sentencing after pleading guilty in June. Jones has agreed to cooperate in the federal probe, potentially raising the stakes for Williams.

Fourteen people, including former union and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles officials, have been convicted in the scandal. One of the convicted ex-union officials, Joe Ashton, also sat on the board of General Motors. 

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In its news release, the UAW noted its prior reasoning for paying Williams' legal fees:

"Pursuant to the union’s long-standing policies, the UAW previously had agreed to advance former president Dennis Williams’ reasonable attorney’s fees relating to the federal investigation under the express condition and representation by Mr. Williams that he had not engaged in any illegal conduct."

The union noted that it will "seek full repayment of any legal fees advanced by the UAW if the individual concerned is convicted of a crime or found to have violated the UAW Constitution or rules."

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress. Follow him on Twitter: @_ericdlawrence.