PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Benefits Companion - Best Practices for Reducing ERISA Litigation Risk
ERISA Claims: How Can Benefits Be An Employer’s Burden?
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
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
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
On April 17, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a unanimous opinion, resolved a circuit split and established a plaintiff-friendly pleading standard for ERISA prohibited transaction claims in Cunningham v. Cornell University,...more
The US Supreme Court has issued a unanimous opinion that could lead to an increase in litigation for prohibited transaction claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA)....more
On April 17, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a unanimous opinion on the requirements for plaintiffs to survive a motion to dismiss regarding an allegation that plan fiduciaries engaged in a prohibited transaction under...more
In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Cunningham v. Cornell University that plaintiffs can satisfy the requirements for pleading prohibited party-in interest transactions under ERISA section 406(a) without...more
On April 17, 2025, the Supreme Court decided Cunningham v. Cornell University, No. 23-1007, holding that a plaintiff may state a prohibited-transaction claim in violation of ERISA § 406(a) without referencing the exemptions...more
In a unanimous decision reversing dismissal of prohibited transaction claims based on fees paid to defined contribution plan recordkeepers, the Supreme Court held that ERISA’s prohibited transaction exemptions are affirmative...more
ERISA breach of fiduciary duty class actions have surged in recent years, prompting courts to grapple with complex questions about how these claims should be pleaded and litigated. Among the most consequential and unresolved...more
In Singh v. Deloitte LLP, et al., No. 23-1108, 2024 WL 5049345 (2d Cir. Dec. 10, 2024), the Second Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a district court’s dismissal of a complaint alleging that plan fiduciaries caused an...more
Like the tides, the rules regarding ERISA’s fiduciary duties are constantly in flux. The Fourth Circuit recently ruled that while providing “investment advice for a fee” implicates those duties, pitching investment services...more
On December 1, 2022, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated a district court’s certification of a nationwide class of 8,000+ retirement plans serving hundreds of thousands of participants in an ERISA action...more
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
Courts have struggled through the years when considering the enforceability of mandatory class action waivers and arbitration provisions contained within Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) plans and other...more
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit on Thursday, February 4, affirmed the dismissal of an ERISA class-action lawsuit filed against General Electric Company and its former CEO. The complaint had alleged the...more
In Sullivan-Mestecky v. Verizon Communs. Inc., 961 F.3d 91 (2d Cir. 2020), the Second Circuit held that a claim under Section 502(a)(3) of ERISA could proceed, where the beneficiary pled that the plan and its agents...more
North Carolina District Court Permits Plan’s Lawsuit Against Third Party Administrator to Continue A federal district court in North Carolina has ruled that a plan subject to the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of...more