Seyfarth Synopsis: If an ERISA plaintiff establishes a fiduciary breach, expect the computation of damages to be a complicated process that may enhance damages through judgment. And a court judgment in complicated cases can...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The courts have stated that their review of fiduciary decisions is both exacting and deferential. A recent decision from the Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit offers help to ERISA benefit...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court dismissed, prior to any discovery, claims of ERISA fiduciary breach because the plan participant-plaintiffs failed to show that the alleged breaches caused them concrete injury. ...more
6/8/2020
/ Article III ,
Breach of Duty ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Duty of Prudence ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mismanagement ,
Pensions ,
Plan Participants ,
Retirement Plan ,
SCOTUS ,
Standing ,
Thole v U.S. Bank
On March 2, 2020, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in California v. Texas, No. 19-840, which appeals the decision of the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit that struck down the individual mandate to the...more
4/1/2020
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Article III ,
Breach of Duty ,
California v Texas ,
Certiorari ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Individual Mandate ,
Minimum Essential Coverage ,
Regulatory Burden ,
SCOTUS ,
Severability Doctrine ,
Standing
Seyfarth Synopsis: Administrators of ERISA plans frequently receive requests from participants, beneficiaries, and their representatives for plan-related documents. A recent decision from the Court of Appeals for the Fifth...more
12/3/2019
/ Beneficiaries ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Document Management ,
Document Requests ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Failure to Produce ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Form 5500 ,
Multiemployer Plan ,
Pensions ,
Plan Administrators ,
Plan Documents ,
Retirement ,
Retirement Plan ,
Statutory Penalties ,
Statutory Violations
Seyfarth Synopsis: Reversing course and overruling previous precedent, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit now holds that ERISA plan mandatory arbitration and class action waiver provisions are enforceable, and can...more
10/16/2019
/ 401k ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Agreements ,
Breach of Duty ,
Charles Schwab ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Contract Terms ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Retirement Plan
Synopsis: A recent decision of the federal district court for the Southern District of New York warns ERISA fiduciaries that even innocent mistakes that do not misuse plan assets or unjustly enrich the fiduciaries can cause...more
8/5/2019
/ Breach of Duty ,
Clerical Errors ,
Damages ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Equitable Surcharge ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Plan Administrators ,
Plan Documents ,
Summary Plan Description
Synopsis: ERISA stock-drop litigation has diminished in recent years due to the Supreme Court’s Dudenhoeffer decision (and a rising stock market). Now, the Court will have another chance to weigh in on whether federal ERISA...more
6/26/2019
/ Discovery ,
Duty of Prudence ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
ESOP ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
IBM ,
Inflated Stock Purchase Price ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Pleading Standards ,
SCOTUS ,
Stock Drop Litigation
Synopsis: A new Third Circuit decision has allowed an ERISA fee complaint to stand even though there were no specific allegations of fiduciary errors in the process of selecting investment options and fees. ...more
6/6/2019
/ 403(b) Plans ,
Breach of Duty ,
Circumstantial Evidence ,
Defined Contribution Plans ,
Discovery ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Management ,
Investment Opportunities ,
Putative Class Actions
Seyfarth Synopsis: There is a deep circuit split on who bears the burden of proving loss causation on ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claims. ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Ninth Circuit declined to enforce an agreement to arbitrate ERISA Section 502(a)(2) claims, but did not rule out enforcement in other ERISA claim contexts....more
Seyfarth Synopsis: A district court in New York has held that a plaintiff cannot assert claims against a plan in which she did not participate and cannot assert claims of fiduciary breach without plausible allegations of...more
In April, the Department of Labor issued new regulations under ERISA related to individuals who offer investment advice to ERISA plans, their fiduciaries, or participants for a fee.
The DOL now says that a fiduciary is...more
On January 25, 2016, in Amgen, Inc. v. Harris, 2016 WL 280886, the Supreme Court sent a strong message to the lower courts, plaintiffs and ERISA fiduciaries that pleading standards for breach of fiduciary duty prudence claims...more
Two recent Supreme Court decisions, and a recent Sixth Circuit analysis on remand from the Supreme Court, offer a roadmap of sorts on ERISA litigation. In both decisions, the Supreme Court did away with presumptions, and at...more