News & Analysis as of

Retirement Plan Benefit Plan Sponsors Excessive Fees

Holland & Knight LLP

Tenth Circuit Dismisses Claims Related to High-Cost Funds, High Recordkeeping Fees

Holland & Knight LLP on

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit issued its decision in Matney v. Barrick Gold of North America, et al. on Sept. 6, 2023, finding that participants in an employer-sponsored defined contribution retirement plan...more

Davis Wright Tremaine LLP

Prudent Plan Governance Essential in Defense Against Fiduciary Breach

Although retirement plan excessive fee cases remain an ongoing concern for plan sponsors, the recent jury trial victory for Yale in Vellali, et. al. v. Yale University, et. al. provides hope for plans with strong, prudent...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Circuit Courts of Appeal Uphold Dismissal of 401(k) Fee Challenges Post-Hughes

Holland & Knight LLP on

Following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Hughes v. Northwestern University, courts around the country continue to articulate the pleading requirements for a breach of duty of prudence claim under the Employee Retirement...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Low-Cost Index Funds in the Crosshairs of New 401(k) Lawsuits

Holland & Knight LLP on

Since late July, at least 10 lawsuits have been filed against large 401(k) plan sponsors that offer certain BlackRock Inc. target-date funds (TDF) among their investment options. In an unexpected pivot away from the 401(k)...more

Goodwin

ERISA Litigation Update - April 2022

Goodwin on

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

Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP

Plan Sponsors on Alert After Recent Supreme Court Decision

On January 24, 2022, the U.S. Supreme Court handed down an important decision affecting plan fiduciaries who select investment options available to participants in a self-directed employee retirement plan (such as a 401(k)...more

Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP

SCOTUS ERISA Fee Litigation Update: Hughes et al. v. Northwestern University

On January 24, 2022, in a rare, unanimous 8-0 decision (Justice Barrett recused herself from the case), the Supreme Court of the United States (the “Supreme Court”) vacated a Seventh Circuit affirmation of the dismissal of...more

Holland & Knight LLP

Supreme Court Stresses Importance of Ongoing Monitoring of All ERISA Plan Investment Options

Holland & Knight LLP on

In Hughes v. Northwestern University, current and former participants in Northwestern University's defined-contribution retirement plans filed litigation on behalf of the plans' participants asserting that the University, its...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

District Court Issues First Post-Northwestern University 401(k) “Fee” Decision

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

Just this month, the Supreme Court issued its much anticipated decision in Northwestern University, the first time the Court has been called upon to examine a lawsuit alleging that a 401(k) plan’s investment and fees were...more

Dorsey & Whitney LLP

Supreme Court Give Plaintiffs a Narrow Win in 401(k) Fee Case

Dorsey & Whitney LLP on

Since the first round of cases were filed in 2006, plaintiffs’ counsel have raised hundreds of lawsuits challenging the prudence of fees and investments in 401(k) plans. One of the critical issues in those cases is what needs...more

Burns & Levinson LLP

ERISA Fiduciary Prudence Does Not Necessarily Reflect Modern Portfolio Management - ERISA Prudence And Hughes V. Northwestern...

Burns & Levinson LLP on

The U.S. Supreme Court recently heard arguments in Hughes v. Northwestern University, in which the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals had rejected claims that the fiduciaries of two defined contribution retirement plans at...more

Holland & Hart - The Benefits Dial

The Tide is High…Keep Holding On For More Retirement Plan Fee Litigation

The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling this week in Hughes v. Northwestern University will do nothing to stem the rising tide of retirement plan fee litigation. But the ruling doesn’t mean fiduciary breach claims are more likely to...more

Goodwin

Hughes et al v. Northwestern University et al – Supreme Court Urges Courts to Undertake a Context-Specific Scrutiny of...

Goodwin on

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court vacated the Seventh Circuit’s decision in Hughes v. Northwestern University, an important ERISA case. Although the Court’s decision vacated a Seventh Circuit victory for plan sponsor...more

Miller Canfield

Important Reminder from the U.S. Supreme Court - Just Giving Plan Participants Options Is Not Enough to Satisfy the Duty of...

Miller Canfield on

KEY TAKEAWAYS - ..Plan fiduciaries have a duty of prudence to independently evaluate on an ongoing basis investments offered in a plan’s menu of options and remove any imprudent ones. ..Plan participants’ ultimate...more

Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP

U.S. Supreme Court Says Retirement Plan Must Scrutinize Expenses Even if It Offers Lower-Fee Options

In recent years, participants in 401(k) and similar employer-sponsored retirement plans have filed class action suits alleging that the plans contain overly expensive investment options. On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court...more

Goodwin

ERISA Litigation Update - December 2021

Goodwin on

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

Woodruff Sawyer

Protecting Against the ERISA Litigation Surge

Woodruff Sawyer on

ERISA litigation has exploded in the past few years, particularly cases alleging excessive fees. Last year was the high-water mark for ERISA class actions with over 200 cases filed, an 80% increase from 2019. 2021 is on track...more

Bass, Berry & Sims PLC

Supreme Court Hears Oral Argument: Are Allegations of Excessive Retirement Plan Fees Sufficient to State a Claim under ERISA?

Bass, Berry & Sims PLC on

On December 6, the U.S. Supreme Court heard oral argument in the case of Hughes v. Northwestern University. The question at issue is whether allegations that a defined-contribution retirement plan paid fees that substantially...more

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Hell hath no fury than a former employee scorned

I always say that the reason I don’t have employees is I was once an employee too. I was never totally happy with pay and benefits and I don’t know if I ever could be totally satisfied where I worked. I was a good employee,...more

Goodwin

ERISA Litigation Update - July 2021

Goodwin on

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

Verrill

Supreme Court will Hear Northwestern University 403(b) Plan Excessive Fee Case

Verrill on

The United States Supreme Court will weigh in on the spate of recent lawsuits filed against colleges and universities related to the schools’ retirement plans. The Court has granted a request for review from participants in...more

Goodwin

ERISA Litigation Update - April 2021

Goodwin on

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

Ary Rosenbaum - The Rosenbaum Law Firm P.C.

Watch out for excessive termination fees

It’s pretty simple as a 401(k) plan sponsor, you have a fiduciary duty to only pay reasonable plan expenses....more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

Wisconsin Becomes a Hotbed for ERISA Class Action Claims

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

Proskauer - Employee Benefits & Executive...

“Divane Intervention”: ERISA 401(k) Plan Investment Claims Dead On Arrival

A federal district court in Illinois recently dismissed “excessive fee” and “imprudent investment” claims against the plan fiduciaries of the CareerBuilder 401(k) plan fiduciaries, relying largely on the Seventh Circuit’s...more

45 Results
 / 
View per page
Page: of 2

"My best business intelligence, in one easy email…"

Your first step to building a free, personalized, morning email brief covering pertinent authors and topics on JD Supra:
*By using the service, you signify your acceptance of JD Supra's Privacy Policy.
- hide
- hide