News & Analysis as of

Fiduciary Duty Class Action 401k

Bond Schoeneck & King PLLC

401(k) Forfeiture Litigation: Implications for Plan Sponsors

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

Mayer Brown

The Current State of the Law in ERISA Forfeitures Cases

Mayer Brown on

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

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

United Health is latest 401(k) forfeiture lawsuit

UnitedHealth Group is the latest big-name employer to get hit with a class action lawsuit over how it handles 401(k) forfeitures. The case, Kotalik et al. v. UnitedHealth Group Inc., accuses the company and its plan...more

Kilpatrick

The Ninth Circuit Rejects Plaintiffs’ Challenge to 401(k) Investments in Private Equity

Kilpatrick on

On May 22, 2025, the Ninth Circuit affirmed a district court’s decision to reject a class action lawsuit brought against fiduciaries of Intel defined contribution retirement plans that challenged the plan managers’ decision...more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Benefits Monthly Minute - May 2025

The May Monthly Minute brings you up-to-date on mental health parity enforcement relief, as well as smoker surcharge and prohibited transaction litigation. Nonenforcement of 2024 Mental Health Parity Regulations - Earlier...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Down goes Pentegra in a jury trial verdict

If you’re a 401(k) plan provider and think you can get away with charging sky-high fees while prioritizing your own bottom line, think again. A federal jury just reminded us all—fiduciary responsibility under ERISA isn’t just...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Whole Foods settles class action case

Whole Foods Market has agreed to settle a class-action lawsuit that alleged the company failed to prudently manage the administrative fees of its $1.9 billion 401(k) plan, resulting in millions in losses for employees....more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Benefits Monthly Minute - April 2025

The April Monthly Minute showers readers with some eye-opening case law updates, ranging from a $38.8M jury verdict in a 401(k) fee case, to a pair of cases involving Elevance (f/k/a Anthem) health plan coverage exclusions....more

Lowenstein Sandler LLP

Supreme Court Ruling Makes It Easier for Participants To Sue Plan Fiduciaries

Lowenstein Sandler LLP on

On April 17, the Supreme Court unanimously resolved a circuit split in Cunningham v. Cornell University, holding that plan participants need only allege that fiduciaries engaged in a “prohibited transaction” under the...more

Maynard Nexsen

Burden at the Crossroads: Pizarro Paves the Way for Potential Supreme Court Review

Maynard Nexsen on

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

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Clorox forfeiture case goes forward

The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California has decided not to dismiss a class action lawsuit against The Clorox Company and the employee benefits committee of The Clorox Company 401(k) Plan. The lawsuit...more

Holland & Hart - The Benefits Dial

Every Little Thing … Employer Considerations as New 401(k) Lawsuit Includes Extensive Claims

by Alex Smith A recently filed lawsuit related to Swiss Re’s 401(k) plan stands out because of the extensive assortment of allegations...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Northern District of California Dismisses 401(k) Forfeiture Suit with Prejudice

Holland & Knight LLP on

In Hutchins v. HP Inc., the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed – with prejudice – the plaintiff's claims challenging the use of forfeited employer 401(k) contributions. This is the latest...more

Carlton Fields

The Case of Excessive Fees: Supreme Court to Investigate Pleading Standard in ERISA Excessive Fee Litigation

Carlton Fields on

ERISA class action litigation against retirement plan fiduciaries remains a prominent feature of the legal landscape this year. These lawsuits typically involve allegations that plan fiduciaries acted imprudently in...more

Holland & Knight LLP

An Emerging Trend in ERISA Class Action Litigation: 401(k) Forfeiture Suits

Holland & Knight LLP on

There has been a recent uptick in ERISA class actions challenging the use of 401(k) plan forfeitures. Forfeitures are employer contributions that participants forfeit when they leave employment before those contributions vest...more

Jackson Walker

Texas District Court’s Decision in 401(k) Case Has Wide-Ranging Implications for Plan Fiduciaries

Jackson Walker on

On January 10, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued an opinion in Spence v. Am. Airlines, Inc. (N.D. Tex. Jan. 10, 2025) holding that fiduciaries of two American Airlines 401(k) plans...more

Fenwick & West LLP

Judge Finds American Airlines Breached its Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty by Allowing Investment Manager to Prioritize ESG Goals with...

Fenwick & West LLP on

On January 10, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas found that American Airlines and its employee benefit committee (EBC) breached their fiduciary duty of loyalty under the Employee Retirement...more

Miller Canfield

American Airlines Breaches Fiduciary Duty of Loyalty with BlackRock ESG Funds in 401(k) Plans

Miller Canfield on

Whether, and the extent to which, a plan fiduciary can consider nonpecuniary environmental, social and governance (“ESG”) objectives in selecting plan investments has been a hot-button issue for many years, with the view on...more

Ropes & Gray LLP

Practical Takeaways from Spence v. American Airlines, Inc. for ERISA Plan Fiduciaries

Ropes & Gray LLP on

On January 10, 2025, Judge Reed O’Connor of the Northern District of Texas issued a much-anticipated ruling in Spence v. American Airlines, Inc., which marks the first time that a federal judge has written an on-the-merits...more

Keating Muething & Klekamp PLL

Benefits Monthly Minute - October 2024

The October Monthly Minute highlights two recent retirement plan cases, one in which the court sides with the plan and emphasizes plan administrative review over specific investment results and another where plaintiffs are...more

Jackson Lewis P.C.

Class Action Alleges “Scheme” by TIAA and Morningstar to Drive Participants into TIAA’s Most Profitable Funds

Jackson Lewis P.C. on

On August 5, three Named Plaintiffs sued TIAA and Morningstar in the S.D.N.Y., claiming Defendants engaged in a “scheme to enhance corporate profits” by counseling participants to invest in two of TIAA’s most lucrative...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

Eleventh Circuit Reiterates that Burden of Proving Loss Causation Stays with Plaintiffs

The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed a district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the fiduciaries of the Home Depot 401(k) plan, who defended against claims that they breached their fiduciary...more

Goodwin

Minding the Store: Unanticipated ESG Issues Affecting ERISA Fiduciary Supervision

Goodwin on

A recent summary judgment decision from the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas in an ERISA (Employee Retirement Income Security Act) class action challenging the alleged impact of environmental, social,...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

District Court Dismisses Challenge to Use of Plan Forfeitures

A federal district court recently granted a motion to dismiss claims that defined contribution plan fiduciaries breached their fiduciary duties of loyalty and prudence, and violated ERISA’s anti-inurement and prohibited...more

Mayer Brown

Northern District of Texas Expands Fiduciary Exposure by Permitting ESG Proxy Voting Theory to Go to Trial

Mayer Brown on

Case Name and Number: Spence v. American Airlines, Inc., et al., No. 4:23-cv-00552 - INTRODUCTION - On June 20, 2024, Judge Reed O’Connor in the Northern District of Texas (the “court”) denied a motion for summary...more

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