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Mealey's ERISA

  • December 20, 2024

    Adequacy, Typicality Issues Doom Class Certification Bid In ERISA Fees, Funds Case

    LOS ANGELES — Saying in part that “neither Plaintiff has established even a de minimis familiarity with the facts of the case,” a California federal judge denied a motion for class certification in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit over a 403(b) retirement plan’s fees and funds.

  • December 20, 2024

    Agreeing With Hutchins, Judge Dismisses ERISA Forfeiture Suit With Leave To Amend

    NEWARK, N.J. — Repeatedly citing Hutchins v. HP Inc. and noting that the parties “seem to agree” that the retirement plan terms permitted the challenged allocation, a New Jersey federal judge on Dec. 19 dismissed a lawsuit over use of forfeited nonvested retirement plan contributions with leave to amend within 30 days.

  • December 19, 2024

    11th Circuit Upholds Ruling Against Starbucks In COBRA Notice Case Arbitration Bid

    ATLANTA — Upholding a ruling in a dispute over allegedly deficient Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act (COBRA) notice, an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled in part that the spouse of a former Starbucks worker “was not a party to the arbitration agreement” and therefore “cannot be compelled to arbitrate absent another principle of law or equity.”

  • December 19, 2024

    Class Counsel Get A 3rd Of $9M Global Deal In ERISA Proprietary Funds Suit

    CINCINNATI — An Ohio federal magistrate judge on Dec. 18 granted final approval to a global $9 million settlement of an Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action over proprietary funds, from which she authorized paying the requested amounts of $3 million for attorney fees and $30,000 for service awards.

  • December 19, 2024

    3rd Circuit Appeal Seeking Revival Of ERISA Imprudence Case Is Dismissed

    PHILADELPHIA — Without substantive explanation, a Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals case challenging summary judgment for Evonik Corp. and related entities in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action has been dismissed with prejudice pursuant to a joint stipulation.

  • December 18, 2024

    $19M Class Settlement In Lawsuit Over ESOP Wins Final Approval

    TAMPA, Fla. — Upon receiving a joint notice of nonobjection, a Florida federal judge on Dec. 17 granted final approval to a $19 million class settlement that the plaintiffs said will “provide[] an average recovery of more than $100,000 per class member on a gross basis, topping the chart of recent ESOP [employee stock ownership plan] settlements by a substantial margin.”

  • December 18, 2024

    Parties: Full Deal Is Back On Track In ERISA Case Over Alleged Cost-Shifting

    ASHEVILLE, N.C. — A little over a week after reporting the partial breakdown of a global settlement, parties in a class action concerning an alleged cost-shifting scheme regarding health plan administrative fees on Dec. 17 informed a North Carolina federal court that continued negotiations resulted in an “agreement on material terms to resolve all claims.”

  • December 17, 2024

    Final Approval Recommended For $19M Class Deal In Lawsuit Over ESOP

    TAMPA, Fla. — A Florida federal magistrate judge has recommended awarding the requested attorney fees and final approval of a $19 million class settlement that the plaintiffs say would “provide[] an average recovery of more than $100,000 per class member on a gross basis, topping the chart of recent ESOP [employee stock ownership plan] settlements by a substantial margin.”

  • December 16, 2024

    Summary Judgment Bid Fails In ERISA Suit Challenging TDFs

    ALLENTOWN, Pa. — With scant explanation, a Pennsylvania federal judge on Dec. 13 denied a summary judgment motion filed by PPL Corp. and related defendants in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action challenging the inclusion of Northern Trust target date funds (TDFs) in four defined-contribution pension benefit plans.

  • December 13, 2024

    $69M Class Settlement Is Proposed In ERISA Date Funds Challenge

    MINNEAPOLIS — A Minnesota federal court was asked on Dec. 13 to preliminarily approve a $69 million proposal that the class representative says would be “the largest settlement in the history of investment performance cases in an [Employee Retirement Income Security Act] context.”

  • December 12, 2024

    $3.5M Settlement In ERISA Suit Over TDFs, Another Fund Wins Final Approval

    GREENSBORO, N.C. — A North Carolina federal judge has granted final approval to a $3.5 million class settlement that resolved retirement plan participants’ Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit challenging the use of target-date funds (TDFs) and another investment option.

  • December 12, 2024

    DOL Files Amicus Brief In 11th Circuit ERISA Over Outdated Pension Assumptions

    ATLANTA — The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has filed an amicus curiae brief supporting revival of a putative class action over the calculation of annuities for married pension plan participants,arguing that part of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act requires using “reasonable assumptions” and that the challenged ruling is “[c]ontrary to the meaning and purpose of the statute, governing regulation, and overwhelming weight of case law.”

  • December 12, 2024

    Judge Finds For Plaintiffs On 1 Claim In ERISA Benefits Suit Over Spin-Off

    PHILADELPHIA — After conducting a bench trial, a Pennsylvania federal judge reached a split partial verdict in a class action over corporate restructuring that affected retirement benefits, finding that the defendants are liable on a claim for optional retirement benefits but not on a claim for early retirement benefits.

  • December 12, 2024

    5th Circuit Upholds Dismissal Of Pro Se Appellant’s ERISA Pension Case

    NEW ORLEANS — Affirming dismissal of an Employee Retirement Income Security Act pension dispute in an unpublished per curiam opinion, a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel briefly said the pro se appellant abandoned any challenge by failing to brief it.

  • December 11, 2024

    2nd Circuit Refusal To Revive ERISA Fees Case Draws Concurring Opinion

    NEW YORK — As urged by amicus curiae the Chamber of Commerce of the United States of America, a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel on Dec. 10 refused to revive a putative class case in which participants in a Deloitte retirement plan challenged record-keeping fees under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, with one member of the panel concurring “in part . . . and in the judgment.”

  • December 09, 2024

    Partial Settlement Breakdown Reported In ERISA Suit Over Alleged Cost-Shifting

    ASHEVILLE, N.C. — In Dec. 6 filings in North Carolina federal court, parties in a class action concerning an alleged cost-shifting scheme say they had expected to seek preliminary approval of a full settlement, but the tentative deal fell apart at last minute in regard to one defendant.

  • December 09, 2024

    U.S. High Court Won’t Review Big ERISA Multiplan Opt-Out Class Ruling

    WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Dec. 9 declined to review a Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals decision that three service providers said “raises serious constitutional concerns as to the allowable breadth of class actions brought on behalf of hundreds of thousands of participants in thousands of unrelated employer-sponsored [Employee Retirement Income Security Act] benefit plans.”

  • December 09, 2024

    Alleging Price-Fixing, Doctors Sue MultiPlan, Insurers In Federal Court

    CHICAGO — Alleging that they were paid only about 8% of what they billed for out-of-network services because of “a buyers’ cartel dating back to at least 2015,” medical practices that refer to themselves as doctors sued MultiPlan Corp., Aetna Inc., The Cigna Group, UnitedHealth Group Inc., Elevance Health Inc. and other entities in Illinois federal court, asserting numerous claims including some under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

  • December 09, 2024

    Bankruptcy Judge Still Upholds PBGC Regulations In Withdrawal Liability Row

    WILMINGTON, Del. — A Delaware federal bankruptcy judge has declined to reconsider rejecting challenges to two Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. (PBGC) regulations regarding federal funds awarded to multiemployer pension plans.

  • December 06, 2024

    New Jersey Federal Magistrate Allows Limited Discovery In Disability Dispute

    NEWARK, N.J. — A New Jersey federal magistrate judge on Dec. 5 determined that an attorney who alleges that his claim for long-term disability (LTD) benefits was wrongfully denied is entitled to take very limited discovery regarding compensation and performance evaluations of personnel used by the disability insurer in evaluating his LTD claim.

  • December 06, 2024

    Reconsideration Sought On Dismissal Of Claims Against Exec In Stock Sale Challenge

    BOISE, Idaho — The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) has asked an Idaho federal court to reconsider its dismissal of claims against a former CEO and board chair who sold part of his stock in an allegedly inflated deal that is being challenged under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.

  • December 06, 2024

    $2.5M Class Settlement Would Be Almost 17% Of Max Damages, ERISA Plaintiffs Say

    OAKLAND, Calif. — Plaintiffs challenging a 401(k) plan’s record-keeping fees and fund offerings under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act have asked a California federal court for preliminary approval of a $2.5 million class settlement they say works out to about 16.86% of their “maximum possible damages.”

  • December 06, 2024

    Claimant Appeals Ruling That She Failed To Meet Burden Of Proving Disability

    CINCINNATI — A disability claimant filed a notice of appeal to the Sixth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals, challenging a Michigan federal judge’s finding that she failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that she was disabled from performing the duties of her own occupation.

  • December 06, 2024

    Disability Insurer Properly Terminated LTD Benefits Based On Policy Limitation

    ST. LOUIS — A disability insurer’s termination of a disability claimant’s long-term disability (LTD) benefits was reasonable because the insurer properly found that the claimant’s disability was the result of a mental illness, which limited the claimant’s benefits to 24 months, a Missouri federal judge said in granting the insurer’s motion for partial summary judgment.

  • December 06, 2024

    LTD Benefits Wrongfully Terminated Based On Policy Limitation, Claimant Says

    DENVER — A disability insurer and its claims administrator wrongfully terminated a claim for long-term disability (LTD) benefits based on the policy’s limitation for mental or nervous disorders, a disability claimant contends in a complaint filed in Colorado federal court.