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Fiduciary Duty Today's Popular Updates

Walkers

Trustees, ESG and Investments – key considerations

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As global attention sharpens on climate change and social justice issues, sustainability and responsible governance are increasingly becoming higher priorities for 'Millennial' and 'Gen Z' Beneficiaries....more

Katten Muchin Rosenman LLP

Texas Governor Signs HB 40, Expanding Jurisdiction of the Texas Business Court - Delaware Court System Faces Increased Industry...

On the final day of the 89th Legislative Session, the Texas Legislature passed House Bill 40 (HB 40) to expand the jurisdictional and operational framework of the Texas Business Court. The Bill has since been signed by...more

Groom Law Group, Chartered

Modernization of DC Plan Investments

There is a growing interest from the retirement industry and policymakers to modernize 401(k) and other defined contribution (“DC”) plan investments by incorporating alternative asset classes and lifetime income features. ...more

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP

New DOL Guidance for Retirement Plans on Cryptocurrency and ESG Investments

The new administration has recently taken steps to revise guidance with respect to two retirement plan investment options: cryptocurrency, and funds focusing on environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) factors. These two...more

Fox Rothschild LLP

Wolfspeed, Durham-Based Semiconductor Producer, Fighting Financial Peril in the Market and Employee Exits in the Courts

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Wolfspeed, a Durham-based silicon carbide semiconductor business, has plenty on its plate these days amid media reports of an impending bankruptcy reorganization. While such a filing would be aimed at a short(ish) judicial...more

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

DOL Rescinds 2022 Guidance Cautioning Against 401(k) Plan Investments in Cryptocurrencies

On May 28, 2025, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued Compliance Assistance Release No. 2025-01 which rescinds the DOL’s prior Compliance Assistance Release No. 2022-1 which had warned 401(k) plan fiduciaries against adding...more

Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP

A Deep Dive Into Intermediary Remuneration as the UK Supreme Court Considers Its Legality

Is payment to an intermediary, not by its client but by the financial service provider, an illegal inducement or a legitimate distribution cost? In Hopcraft, the UK Supreme Court will consider this perennial question. The...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

Texas Federal Court Allows an ERISA Fiduciary Challenge Against Alleged "ESG Investing" Without Any ESG Funds

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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

Offit Kurman

Director & Officer Duties: What Every Leader Should Know

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Earlier this year, the FDIC, acting as receiver for Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”), filed a breach of fiduciary duty lawsuit against six officers and eleven directors of the bank. The FDIC alleged that these individuals ignored...more

Carlton Fields

DOL ESG Rule Withstands Demolition of Chevron Deference

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In Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raimondo, the U.S. Supreme Court knocked down Chevron U.S.A. Inc. v. Natural Resources Defense Council Inc., leaving the doctrine of Chevron deference in rubble. The doctrine stated that, when a...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

Supreme Court Lowers Bar to Pleading Prohibited Transactions, Despite “Serious Concerns” of Meritless Litigation

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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

A&O Shearman

Texas court upholds Biden administration’s rule on ESG Investing for ERISA fiduciaries

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In a recent decision by the U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas, Judge Matthew J. Kacsmaryk ruled that the U.S. Department of Labor’s 2022 Rule (the 2022 Rule) on environmental, social, and governance (ESG)...more

Verrill

Spence v. American Airlines: A Texas Court’s View of the Duty of Loyalty under ERISA

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Since we last discussed environmental, social, and corporate governance (“ESG”) developments in the context of ERISA retirement plans, ESG litigation has taken a rather unexpected turn. Although the plan lineup in Spence v....more

Morgan Lewis

DOL’s VFCP Final Rule Adds Limited ‘Self-Correction’ Program for Late Contributions, Participant Loan Failures

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The Employee Benefits Security Administration recently released its final rule amending and restating the Voluntary Fiduciary Correction Program, along with corresponding amendments to a related class exemption, Prohibited...more

Fenwick & West LLP

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

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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

Fisher Phillips

Rising ERISA Class-Action Lawsuits Over Tobacco Surcharges in Health Plans: What Employers Need to Know + 6 Steps to Stay...

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A wave of ERISA class-action lawsuits is challenging tobacco surcharge programs in employer-sponsored health plans across the U.S. These cases center on potential fiduciary breaches, with plaintiffs arguing that surcharges...more

Cozen O'Connor

Summarizing the SEC’s 2025 Examination Priorities Report, Part 2

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In the second part of this legal update series, we summarize the key takeaways from the Division of Examinations’ (Division) 2025 priorities report released on October 21, 2024. The Division remains focused on mainstays like...more

Goodwin

2025 SEC Exam Priorities for Investment Advisers and Registered Investment Companies

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On October 21, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) Division of Examinations (Division) released its examination priorities for 2025, outlining the key topics the Division plans to focus on in the upcoming fiscal...more

Foster Swift Collins & Smith

DOL Echoes Employee Benefits and Cybersecurity Best Practices

On April 14, 2021, the U.S. Department of Labor’s (“DOL”) Employee Benefits Security Administration (“EBSA”) issued its first cybersecurity best practices guidance for retirement plans. The EBSA guidance was highly...more

Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft LLP

Delaware Chancery Court Finds a ~27% Founding Stockholder Is Not a Controller

On July 2, 2024, the Delaware Chancery Court in Sciannella v. AstraZeneca dismissed stockholder claims in connection with the $3 billion merger of Viela Bio and Horizon Therapeutics in 2021. The merger was approved by Viela’s...more

Mayer Brown

UK Supreme Court Clarifies Basis of ‘Knowing Receipt’ Claims Arising From Breach of Fiduciary Duty

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"The law on 'knowing receipt' has perplexed judges and academics alike for several decades" – Lord Burrows (paragraph 99). In a decision with significant implications for claims involving fraud and breach of fiduciary duty...more

Woodruff Sawyer

Corporate Barbarians at the Gates: The Attack on Delaware

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All empires eventually decline. For decades, Delaware has held the crown as the premier state of incorporation for domestic companies (and many foreign companies seeking a foothold in the United States capital markets). But...more

Morgan Lewis

DOL Removes Restrictions on Recommendations of Principal Traded Assets from Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02

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The US Department of Labor (DOL) amended Prohibited Transaction Exemption 2020-02 (PTE 2020-02) to provide relief for recommendations of all types of principal trades. This change, effective September 23, 2024 and subject to...more

Fisher Phillips

Don't Forget About ERISA in Your Health Plan’s Cybersecurity Efforts: Important Reminders for Plan Fiduciaries in the Wake of...

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Earlier this year, a cyberattack on a leading healthcare claims processing provider had an unprecedented impact on patients and healthcare providers across the country. While group health plans were not directly targeted in...more

Troutman Pepper Locke

5 Issues to Consider When Liquidating Through an ABC

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Assignments for the benefit of creditors, or ABCs, continue to grow in popularity as a tool for the orderly wind-down of companies. Originally published in Law360 - March 21, 2024....more

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