News & Analysis as of

Class Action Employee Benefits Fiduciary Duty

A class action is a type of legal action where a representative individual or group of individuals can bring a claim on behalf of a larger group or class who share a common legal interest.
Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Benefits Monthly Minute - October 2024

The October Monthly Minute highlights two recent retirement plan cases, one in which the court sides with the plan and emphasizes plan administrative review over specific investment results and another where plaintiffs are...more

Carlton Fields

Practical Thoughts for Sponsors About Current ERISA Forfeiture Litigation

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A notable trend in ERISA litigation has emerged as in-house attorneys look to mitigate the risks of coming waves of class action litigation. Beginning in late 2023, there have been several challenges to the use of forfeiture...more

The Wagner Law Group

Forfeiture Cases – Update

The Wagner Law Group on

Last year, we alerted you to the filing of several class action lawsuits alleging that plan fiduciaries violated their duties of prudence and loyalty under Title I of ERISA by applying forfeitures to reduce employer...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Arkansas Court Declines to Dismiss Challenge to ESOP Releveraging Transaction

Holland & Knight LLP on

The U.S. District Court for the Western District of Arkansas issued its written decision in Shipp v. Central States Manufacturing, Inc. on July 5, 2024, declining to dismiss the case against Central States Manufacturing Inc....more

Goodwin

Minding the Store: Unanticipated ESG Issues Affecting ERISA Fiduciary Supervision

Goodwin on

A recent summary judgment decision from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in an ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) class action challenging the alleged impact of environmental, social,...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

District Court Dismisses Challenge to Use of Plan Forfeitures

A federal district court recently granted a motion to dismiss claims that defined contribution plan fiduciaries breached their fiduciary duties of loyalty and prudence, and violated ERISA’s anti-inurement and prohibited...more

Mayer Brown

Northern District of Texas Expands Fiduciary Exposure by Permitting ESG Proxy Voting Theory to Go to Trial

Mayer Brown on

Case Name and Number: Spence v. American Airlines, Inc., et al., No. 4:23-cv-00552 - INTRODUCTION - On June 20, 2024, Judge Reed O’Connor in the Northern District of Texas (the “court”) denied a motion for summary...more

Groom Law Group, Chartered

ERISA Group Health Plans – The New Target in Fee Cases

Earlier this year, a Johnson & Johnson (“J&J”) employee brought a class action complaint (the “Complaint”) against J&J alleging fiduciary breaches under ERISA related to the prescription drug coverage under J&J’s self-funded...more

Troutman Pepper

EDVA Judge Allows Pension Investment Expert to Testify in Class Action ERISA Case

Troutman Pepper on

A recent decision by Senior District Judge Robert Payne on a Daubert motion in class action litigation against a pension fund offers some helpful lessons on challenging expert witnesses in the EDVA. Trauernicht v. Genworth...more

Foley & Lardner LLP

Five Things on the Department of Labor’s Radar for Employee Benefit Plans

Foley & Lardner LLP on

All qualified retirement plans are subject to a myriad of requirements of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA). The United States Department of Labor (DOL) is charged with enforcing the...more

Jones Day

Fiduciaries Beware: Employer Health Plan Under Fire for Alleged Prescription Drug Mismanagement

Jones Day on

An employer health plan is the latest target of class action litigation seeking redress for the alleged conduct of the plan's pharmacy benefit manager ("PBM")....more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

District Court Finds Arbitration and Class Action Waiver Provision Enforceable in Retirement Plan

The Eastern District of Kentucky recently became the latest court to weigh in on arbitration and class action waiver provisions in ERISA-governed defined contribution plans. In Merrow v. Horizon Bank, the court found such a...more

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

American Airlines Moves to Dismiss Suit Challenging Inclusion of ESG Funds in Retirement Plan

In August 2023, American Airlines, Inc. moved to dismiss a class action lawsuit filed against the airline for allegedly jeopardizing employees’ retirement savings by investing in environmental, social and governance (ESG)...more

Littler

Michigan Court Dismisses ERISA Class-Action

Littler on

Fiduciaries of 401(k) and other retirement plans continue to be targeted by class action lawsuits brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) challenging fiduciary decisions regarding investment options...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

Ninth Circuit: Changes to a Services Agreement Require Consideration of Indirect Compensation

A recent Ninth Circuit decision has generated considerable controversy amongst employee benefits practitioners by holding that plan fiduciaries engaged in prohibited transactions when they amended the plan’s existing...more

McDermott Will & Emery

Takeaways from a Recent COBRA Notice Class Action Settlement

Recent years have seen a barrage of class action lawsuits alleging that group health plan continuation coverage election notices, required under the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA), are deficient in one...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

The Eighth Circuit’s “Meaningful Benchmark” Requirement for 401(k) “Excessive Fee” Lawsuits Continues to Generate Dismissals

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

On August 21, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota largely dismissed—for a second time—a putative ERISA class action challenging “excessive” fees and “poor” performance in a 401(k) plan. Fritton v....more

Littler

Federal Court Dismisses Case Alleging Breach of ERISA Fiduciary Duties in 401(k) Class Action

Littler on

Fiduciaries of retirement plans continue to be plagued by class actions brought under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) challenging their fiduciary management of investment options and participant fees. A...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

SeaWorld Litigation will continue

A class action lawsuit brought by former SeaWorld employees that alleged participants in the SWBG LLC 401(k) plan were harmed will continue. The former employees’ arguments sustained the fiduciary breach of the duty of...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Court Finds Named Plaintiffs Inadequate to Represent Proposed Class on ERISA Excessive Fee Claims

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Seyfarth Synopsis: A recent decision from the Eastern District of Michigan serves as a reminder that—while courts are often quick to certify classes in ERISA cases—plaintiffs must satisfy the requirements of Rule 23 and that...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Tech company agrees to fork over $1 million in class action case

Coriant agreed to pay $1 million to resolve claims it violated its fiduciary duties under ERISA while administering its 401(k) plan. Coriant was an optical telecommunications company that was acquired by another company in...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Nestle on verge of winning most of their case

A U.S. District Court federal magistrate judge in the Eastern District of Wisconsin mostly sided with Nestlé USA Inc by recommending the dismissal. of a class action lawsuit alleging fiduciary negligence and self-dealing in...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Court Compels Proposed ESOP Class to Individual Arbitration Based on Plan Document

Holland & Knight LLP on

Historically, courts around the country have approached the enforceability of class action waivers and arbitration provisions in ESOP and Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) plan documents differently,...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Low-Cost Index Funds in the Crosshairs of New 401(k) Lawsuits

Holland & Knight LLP on

Since late July, at least 10 lawsuits have been filed against large 401(k) plan sponsors that offer certain BlackRock Inc. target-date funds (TDF) among their investment options. In an unexpected pivot away from the 401(k)...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

6th Circuit Tosses ERISA Fiduciary Breach Claims

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On June 21, 2022, CommonSpirit Health defeated a putative class action brought by former employees who alleged that the company mismanaged their 401(k) plan by offering higher-cost, actively managed investment options when...more

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