News & Analysis as of

Fiduciary Duty 401k Environmental Social & Governance (ESG)

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

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

ArentFox Schiff

ESG Update: Two Court Decisions Highlight the Importance of the “G” in “ESG”

ArentFox Schiff on

ESG stands for “environmental, social, and governance.” Though often overlooked, two recent cases — Spence v. American Airlines and Exxon v. Arjuna Capital, LLC — focus on G’s place in the ESG initialism. Here, we break...more

Mintz

Texas Court Rules ESG Lawsuit Against Employer's 401(k) Plan Can Proceed

Mintz on

Recently, a Texas federal court denied the defendants' motion to dismiss in a lawsuit featuring allegations that an employer's 401(k) plan, which allegedly relied on ESG principles when making investments, violated ERISA. ...more

Mayer Brown

Decision Alert: Northern District of Texas Expands Fiduciary Liability To Cover Non-ESG Fund Managers’ ESG-Related Conduct

Mayer Brown on

Case Name and Number: Spence v. American Airlines, Inc., et al., No. 4:23-cv-00552 - Introduction - On February 21, 2024, Judge Reed O’Connor in the Northern District of Texas (the “Court”) denied a motion to dismiss an...more

ArentFox Schiff

Airline 401k Decision Illustrates Continued Takeoff of ESG Litigation

ArentFox Schiff on

A Texas federal judge recently permitted an environmental, social, and governance- (ESG) related Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) case filed by an airline pilot against his employer and its benefits plan to...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

Jones Day

Congressional Republicans and State Attorneys General Challenge Biden Administration's ESG 401(k) Rule

Jones Day on

Republicans at the state and federal levels are challenging a Biden administration rule (the "Rule") intended to walk back Trump-era regulations restricting the ability of retirement fund managers to consider climate change...more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Benefits Monthly Minute - March 2023

The March Monthly Minute highlights new proposed deadlines for use of retirement plan forfeitures, unsuccessful efforts to overturn the final ESG rule, and ACA penalty increases for 2024. Sorry Not Sorry: Biden Vetoes...more

BakerHostetler

The Growing Threat to ESG Initiatives

BakerHostetler on

On Jan. 26, 2023, twenty-four states sued the Department of Labor to block a new rule allowing retirement plans to consider environmental, social, and governance concepts (known as ESG) when administering plan assets. The...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Avoid the nonsense about anti-ESG rhetoric

My wife forwarded me an op-ed piece, criticizing the Biden administration rule change on ESG investments in 401(k) plans. Obviously, the person writing it doesn’t understand how 401(k) plans work. ...more

Miller Canfield

ERISA and ESG: Less Confusion?

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​​​​​​​Last year the Department of Labor (“DOL”) proposed changes to ERISA regulations that govern the consideration of environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) factors in retirement plans, as well as fiduciary...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

DOL Removes Certain Restrictions on ESG Considerations in ERISA Plan Investment Management

In November, the Department of Labor (DOL) issued a final rule (Final Rule) that will remove certain restrictions on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) considerations in plan investments. These restrictions were...more

Littler

DOL Issues Final Rule for ERISA Fiduciaries Considering Socially Conscious Investments

Littler on

Employers offering 401(k) and similar retirement plans should familiarize themselves with a new rule published by the Employee Benefits Security Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor, Prudence and Loyalty in...more

Foley Hoag LLP

DOL Eases Restrictions on Use of ESG Factors in Retirement Plan Investment Decisions

Foley Hoag LLP on

The U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) has issued a final rule (the “Final Rule) addressing how ERISA fiduciaries may consider environmental, social and governmental (ESG) factors in making investment decisions for retirement...more

Kilpatrick

DOL Opens ESG Door: What Does It Mean for Plan Fiduciaries?

Kilpatrick on

Department of Labor (“DOL”) Secretary Walsh recently announced final regulations in a blog post titled “Removing Barriers to Considering ESG Factors in Retirement Plan Investments.” While the rules open the door to more...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

ESG Considerations for Retirement Plans: A Moving Target

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

For those with an eye on ERISA and its fiduciary rules, the past few years have caused whiplash when it comes to environmental, social, and corporate governance (“ESG”) investments in retirement plans....more

Morgan Lewis

The Interplay Between ESG Investing and ERISA’s Fiduciary Duties

Morgan Lewis on

Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investing—especially the “E”—is an increasingly hot topic for investors, but it presents unique legal issues for retirement plan decision makers who have strict fiduciary duties to...more

Woodruff Sawyer

Fiduciary Liability Market Update: Management Liability Auxiliary Lines, Part 2

Woodruff Sawyer on

In this three-part series, Woodruff Sawyer management liability expert Jon Janes shines a light on three often-overlooked lines of management liability coverages: Employment Practices Liability, Fiduciary Liability, and Crime...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Between A Rock and A Hard Place... ESG Investments in 401(k) Plan Line-Ups

Seyfarth Shaw LLP on

Seyfarth Synopsis: The ever evolving landscape of environmental, social and governance (ESG) factors and 401(k) plan investment options may have just become even more complicated....more

Kilpatrick

401(k) Plan Investments: ESG, Private Equity and Cryptocurrency

Kilpatrick on

Many employers desire to offer innovative investments in their 401(k) plans as a way to enhance the plan’s value, attract talent and appeal to a younger workforce. But decisions regarding investment options are subject to...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Private Equity Investments In 401(K) Plans – The DOL Says Not So Fast

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

Hot button ERISA fiduciary issues remain a focus for investment committees of 401(k) plans in 2022. From “excessive” fee litigation – including litigation over the duty to monitor the fees charged by various mutual funds...more

Verrill

Thoughts on the DOL’s Proposed ESG Regulation

Verrill on

The latest installment in the regulatory back-and-forth over the investment of ERISA-governed retirement plan assets based on environmental, social, and corporate governance (“ESG”) factors arrived on October 14, 2021 in the...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

DOL won’t enforce ESG and proxy voting rules

Not surprising most of us, the Department of Labor (DOL)’s Employee Benefits Security Administration (EBSA) announced that it won’t enforce recently published rules on Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) investments...more

Goodwin

ERISA Litigation Update - April 2021

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Welcome to Goodwin’s ERISA Litigation Update. Litigation involving ERISA-governed benefits plans has exploded in recent years. Lawyers in our award-winning ERISA Litigation practice have extensive experience litigating these...more

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