PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Best Practices for Reducing ERISA Litigation Risk
ERISA Claims: How Can Benefits Be An Employer’s Burden?
Background - In a wave of class-action litigation beginning around 2023, plaintiffs have alleged violations of fiduciary duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and prohibited transaction rules in...more
Since September 2023, ERISA plaintiff’s firms have filed approximately 60 class action lawsuits challenging the longstanding practice of plan sponsors using plan forfeitures to offset their employer contributions in 401(k)...more
Another week, another Adams v. Goliath story in the world of ERISA litigation—and this time, Goliath is Cigna. The company is now facing its second lawsuit in as many months over how it handled forfeitures in its $13 billion...more
Let me be honest: most fiduciary training out there is about as exciting as watching paint dry in a compliance office. It’s often a checkbox exercise—generic, outdated, and completely divorced from the real-world problems...more
This month’s Friday Five explores recent ERISA disability benefit decisions involving key issues such as when attorney’s fees should be decided and factors used in determining venue transfer. It also explores retroactive...more
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision Cunningham v. Cornell University, 145 S.Ct. 1020 (2025) significantly lowers the pleading standard for prohibited transaction claims under Section 406(a) of the Employee Retirement...more
A Florida district court recently gave TECO Energy, Inc. another victory in an ERISA case when it dismissed Plaintiff’s proposed class action with prejudice. Roche v. Teco Energy, Inc., No. 8:23-cv-01571, 2025 U.S. Dist....more
UBS has found itself the latest target in the growing wave of ERISA litigation surrounding the handling of forfeitures in 401(k) plans. In Czakoczi v. UBS AG et al., filed in the District of New Jersey, the allegations mirror...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit (covering Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Puerto Rico, and Rhode Island) recently awarded a victory to employers litigating claims “related to” certain employer-sponsored...more
On May 21, 2025, the Sixth Circuit revived a company’s lawsuit against Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan (BCBSM) for breaching its fiduciary duties under ERISA as a third-party administrator (TPA). The plaintiff company,...more
The Sixth Circuit recently granted an employer win in an ERISA excessive fee case when it affirmed the dismissal of a proposed class action brought by current and former employees of DENSO International America, Inc., a...more
This month’s Friday Five examines recent court rulings on both short- and long-term disability benefits, focusing on key interpretations—including how "earnings" are defined under an employer’s plan....more
There has been a recent rise in Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) litigation against third-party administrators (TPAs) and other service providers challenging their management of self-funded health...more
Employers navigating the complexities of the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act ("MHPAEA") may find themselves questioning the true impact of the federal government's recently issued nonenforcement policy. This...more
If there’s a Mount Rushmore of ERISA class-action litigators, you better believe Jerry Schlichter’s face is carved into it—probably right next to a 408(b)(2) disclosure and a stack of mutual fund fee charts. And once again,...more
Following a jury’s decision to award over $38 million to a class of more than 26,000 participants in Pentegra’s multiple employer plan, the issue of working with providers affiliated with the plan sponsor highlights the...more
On January 10, 2025, in Spence v. American Airlines, a federal district court in Texas ruled that American Airlines (the company) and the committee overseeing its 401(k) plans (the committee) breached their duty of loyalty...more
Look, I get it. There are a lot of lawyers out there. Ambulance chasers, courtroom showmen, legal eagles with late-night TV spots and suspiciously white teeth. But here’s the thing: I’m not one of them....more
Excessive fee cases against plans governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) have been on the rise for the last decade. ERISA litigation is expanding with novel theories such as forfeiture litigation....more
We recently reported on a district court decision holding that the Central States Pension Fund’s calculation of withdrawal liability should not have included contribution rate increases imposed after the Fund’s implementation...more
On Thursday, April 17, a unanimous Supreme Court held that a less demanding pleading standard is applicable when plaintiffs bring an Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) class action under ERISA Section...more
Certain transactions between employee benefit plans and “parties in interest” are prohibited under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA). ...more
In recent years, prescription drug prices have been top-of-mind for state legislators, who have responded by passing laws that seek to control that pricing in a variety of ways, including by regulating pharmacy benefit...more
Under the Supreme Court’s recent decision in Cunningham v. Cornell University, No. 23-1007 (April 17, 2025), plaintiffs asserting that ERISA plan administrators engaged in prohibited transactions under ERISA Section 406 are...more
In Cunningham v. Cornell University,1 the Supreme Court unanimously held that plaintiffs who bring a prohibited transaction claim under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (“ERISA”) are only...more