Viewpoints: Portfolio Company Pension Liabilities
On October 5, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court denied certiorari in New England Teamsters and Trucking Industry Pension Fund v. Sun Capital Partners III, LP, et al.1 The Supreme Court’s decision not to review the First Circuit’s...more
The Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act of 1980 ("MPPAA") amended the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 ("ERISA") and the Internal Revenue Code to make "trade[s] or business[es]" that are under "common...more
New York partner Bradd Williamson, Global Chair of Latham’s Benefits, Compensation & Employment Practice, and Chicago partner Robin Struve discuss Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England Teamsters & Trucking Industry...more
Key Points - The US Court of Appeals for the First Circuit reversed a lower court decision which held that two affiliated private equity funds with indirect ownership interests in the same portfolio company were liable for...more
On November 22, 2019, the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that two separate private equity funds managed by the same general partner/management firm were not liable for the pension fund withdrawal...more
This edition of Employment Flash looks at recent NLRB activity, including its issuance of a decision suggesting two members would be willing to reconsider a precedent regarding surveillance of employees’ union activity. We...more
The recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in the Sun Capital Partners case may allay some of the concerns that private-equity and other investment funds that acquire or invest in portfolio...more
First Circuit: Two affiliated funds did not form an implied partnership liable for pension obligations of a portfolio company, but private equity funds can still be subject to controlled group pension liability...more
On November 22, 2019, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England Teamsters and Trucking Industry Pension Fund (1st Cir., No. 16-1376, Nov. 22, 2019) (“Sun Capital IV”)...more
In a decision published on November 22, 2019, the First Circuit reversed a district court’s prior decision and held two Sun Capital private equity funds were not liable for the withdrawal liability incurred when a...more
The First Circuit issued a decision holding that two private equity funds involved in a case are not required to pay for the withdrawal limit of a portfolio company. Despite the limited victory, the guiding rule with respect...more
In an important decision, the U.S. First Circuit Court of Appeals recently ruled that two separate but related private equity funds – Sun Capital Partners III and Sun Capital Partners IV – are not jointly and severally liable...more
Last Friday, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit ruled that two co-investing Sun Capital private equity funds (the Sun Funds) had not created an implied “partnership-in-fact” for purposes of determining whether...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The First Circuit reversed a district court’s ruling holding two Sun Capital private equity (PE) funds responsible for the withdrawal liability incurred by a bankrupt portfolio company. ...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: In a long-awaited decision with significant impact for the private equity industry, in Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England Teamsters & Trucking Industry Pension Fund, the United States Court of...more
The First Circuit, however, disagreed with the lower court. Analyzing the multi-factor test for establishing partnership status under federal tax court precedent and noting the lack of other formal guidance from regulators or...more
A political crisis in Rome has economics [at least partially] and EU commitment at its core and is reminding some observers of the Greece morass of a few years back. The uncertainty the situation’s creating is not expected to...more
In light of the recent decisions by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit and the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts in Sun Capital, private investment funds, multiemployer pension funds and the...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: A bankruptcy court overseeing an employer’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceeding allowed the employer to pay certain unsecured creditors before paying Worker Adjustment And Retraining Notification Act (“WARN”)...more
Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England Teamsters and Trucking Industry Pension Fund has been analyzed extensively over the past four years, as it has made its way from the US District Court for the District of...more
The Private Equity Practice has been getting an increasing number of calls related to the decision made earlier this spring (Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New Eng. Teamsters & Trucking Indus. Pension Fund, 2016 US Dist....more
The recent furore over the collapse of high street retailer BHS has caused fierce debate over whether companies, or their ultimate owners, are responsible for the upkeep of a pension plan. For private equity, the debate has...more
The recent opinion by the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts on remand from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit in the Sun Capital Partners case may be troubling to private equity funds and...more
Private Equity Funds Found Liable for Portfolio Company’s ERISA Withdrawal Liability - The most recent ruling in the ongoing Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England Teamsters and Trucking Industry Pension Fund case...more
Non-Enforcement - Amendments to the Venture Capital Fund Adviser and Private Fund Adviser Exemptions - Last month the SEC’s Division of Investment Management issued a guidance update (Update) addressing recent...more