Two recent class action lawsuits charging a breach of fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) have increased the stakes and raised important considerations regarding a plan fiduciary’s duty of...more
5/12/2025
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Class Action ,
Due Diligence ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Duty of Prudence ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employment Litigation ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment Management ,
Plan Participants ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Retirement Plan ,
SCOTUS
In recent months, Wisconsin federal courts have witnessed a dramatic increase in class litigation raising breach of fiduciary duty claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). These claims target...more
The Supreme Court of the United States has held many times that the federal courts do not have jurisdiction over a lawsuit unless the plaintiff has standing to sue under the federal Constitution. To have standing, the Court...more
6/5/2020
/ 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
In Dorman v. Charles Schwab Corp., No. 18-15281 (August 20, 2019), the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that a 401(k) plan participant was required to individually arbitrate his claims regarding the plan’s fees...more
8/30/2019
/ 401k ,
Arbitration ,
Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Motion to Compel ,
NLRA ,
Prohibited Transactions ,
Putative Class Actions ,
Unenforceable Contract Terms
In late 2018, in Sulyma v. Intel Corporation Investment Policy Committee, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals held that a plaintiff’s access to documents disclosing an alleged breach of fiduciary duty did not trigger the...more
In Josef K. v. California Physicians’ Service, No. 18-cv-06385-YGR (U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, June 3, 2019), Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers concluded that an independent medical review (IMR)...more
In Sulyma v. Intel Corporation Investment Policy Committee, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently held that having access to documents disclosing an alleged breach of fiduciary duty is not sufficient to trigger the...more
On July 24, 2018, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in Munro v. University of Southern California, No. 17-55550, that an employer/fiduciary of a 401(k) plan cannot force a fiduciary breach claim under Employee...more
7/31/2018
/ 401k ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employment Contract ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Retirement Plan ,
University of Southern California (USC)