Dismissal of ACA Lawsuit Based Only on Standing Grounds -
Seyfarth Synopsis: In Texas v. California, the Supreme Court rejected another challenge to the Affordable Care Act (“Obamacare” or “ACA”). The Court never reached...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court unanimously upheld Act 900, an Arkansas law regulating Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs). The opinion could be used as a framework for states to attempt to indirectly regulate ERISA plans...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: As the Supreme Court prepares to hear oral arguments on a key case that could have major ramifications on the scope of ERISA preemption, two recent case developments show just how important the high court’s...more
8/28/2020
/ Benefit Plan Reimbursements ,
Certiorari ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Pharmacy Benefit Manager (PBM) ,
Preemption ,
Rate Regulations ,
Rutledge v Pharmaceutical Care Management Association ,
SCOTUS ,
Stare Decisis ,
State Law Claims ,
WARN Act
Seyfarth Synopsis: A recent Supreme Court decision on federal securities law may hold ramifications for ERISA practitioners by addressing whether disgorgement is an equitable remedy....more
7/22/2020
/ 15 U.S.C. § 78u(d)(5) ,
Administrative Authority ,
Business Expenses ,
Calculation of Damages ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Kokesh v SEC ,
Lack of Authority ,
Liu v Securities and Exchange Commission ,
Net Profits ,
Remedies ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court dismissed, prior to any discovery, claims of ERISA fiduciary breach because the plan participant-plaintiffs failed to show that the alleged breaches caused them concrete injury. ...more
6/8/2020
/ Article III ,
Breach of Duty ,
Defined Benefit Plans ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Duty of Prudence ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Injury-in-Fact ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mismanagement ,
Pensions ,
Plan Participants ,
Retirement Plan ,
SCOTUS ,
Standing ,
Thole v U.S. Bank
On March 2, 2020, the United States Supreme Court granted certiorari in California v. Texas, No. 19-840, which appeals the decision of the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit that struck down the individual mandate to the...more
4/1/2020
/ Affordable Care Act ,
Article III ,
Breach of Duty ,
California v Texas ,
Certiorari ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Individual Mandate ,
Minimum Essential Coverage ,
Regulatory Burden ,
SCOTUS ,
Severability Doctrine ,
Standing
Seyfarth synopsis: The Supreme Court has just granted certiorari in a case regarding the question of whether ERISA preempts state efforts to regulate Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs). The decision will have important...more
Seyfarth synopsis: Arkansas has sought certiorari on the question of the ability of states under the ERISA preemption clause to regulate the rates charged by PBMs, and the Supreme Court has asked for the input of the...more
Synopsis: ERISA stock-drop litigation has diminished in recent years due to the Supreme Court’s Dudenhoeffer decision (and a rising stock market). Now, the Court will have another chance to weigh in on whether federal ERISA...more
6/26/2019
/ Discovery ,
Duty of Prudence ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
ESOP ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
IBM ,
Inflated Stock Purchase Price ,
Petition for Writ of Certiorari ,
Pleading Standards ,
SCOTUS ,
Stock Drop Litigation
Seyfarth Synopsis: On March 20, 2019, in Frank, et al. v. Gaos, No. 17-961, 2019 WL 1264582 (U.S. Mar. 20, 2019), the U.S. Supreme Court held that the Article III standing preconditions to federal court litigation, as...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court appears to have barred equitable tolling under ERISA Section 413’s six-year statute of repose for fiduciary breach claims, subject only to well-pled allegations and proof of fraud or...more
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court has held unanimously that a 1980 amendment to ERISA means that a pension benefit plan need not be established by a church in order to be exempt from ERISA rules, including most...more
6/6/2017
/ Advocate Health Care v Stapleton ,
Church Plans ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exemptions ,
IRS ,
PBGC ,
Pensions ,
Religious Institutions ,
SCOTUS
Synopsis: Supreme Court has agreed to decide the fate of class waiver provisions in mandatory arbitration agreements, which may spark a new trend in ERISA benefits litigation.
On January 13, 2017, the United States...more
1/25/2017
/ Benefit Plan Sponsors ,
Class Action ,
Class Action Arbitration Waivers ,
Class Certification ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Employment Contract ,
Mandatory Arbitration Clauses ,
Murphy Oil v NLRB ,
NLRA ,
NLRB ,
SCOTUS
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court’s grant of certiorari in three Church Plan cases presents the possibility that many Church Plans thought for years to be exempt from ERISA rules, including its funding rules, will now have...more
12/15/2016
/ Actual Injuries ,
Advocate Health Care v Stapleton ,
Article III ,
Certiorari ,
Church Plans ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Exemptions ,
Future Harm ,
IRS ,
Kaplan v St. Peters Healthcare System ,
PBGC ,
Pensions ,
Religious Institutions ,
Rollins v Dignity Health ,
SCOTUS ,
Spokeo v Robins ,
Standing
Seyfarth Synopsis: The Supreme Court’s Spokeo decision is sure to impact ERISA litigation. Expect ERISA plaintiffs to focus more on alleging a “concrete” injury, and ERISA defendants to argue more often that the claim cannot...more
On January 25, 2016, in Amgen, Inc. v. Harris, 2016 WL 280886, the Supreme Court sent a strong message to the lower courts, plaintiffs and ERISA fiduciaries that pleading standards for breach of fiduciary duty prudence claims...more
Two recent Supreme Court decisions, and a recent Sixth Circuit analysis on remand from the Supreme Court, offer a roadmap of sorts on ERISA litigation. In both decisions, the Supreme Court did away with presumptions, and at...more
On May 12, 2015, we reported at here on a non-ERISA case accepted for review by the Supreme Court in the 2015-16 Supreme Court Term that has ERISA Litigation implications. Now, as that Term is set to begin on October 5,...more
9/18/2015
/ Class Action ,
Class Certification ,
Collective Actions ,
Comcast ,
Comcast v. Behrend ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) ,
SCOTUS ,
Summary Plan Description ,
Tyson Foods ,
Tyson Foods v Bouaphakeo
ERISA sets forth complex reporting, disclosure, vesting and funding rules for most private sector employee benefit plans. It also provides a private claim upon which relief may be granted in federal court for violations of...more