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
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
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
It’s the time of year when we all gather around with our families and loved ones. It’s also a good time to remember that your company may have its own family. Forgetting about that family can spell trouble....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
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
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
Decision creates a substantial barrier to controlled group claims in Canada, may provide a template for other jurisdictions. Key Points: ..ERISA controlled group liability is joint and several for all members of a pension...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
Editor’s Overview - In this issue of Proskauer's ERISA Litigation Newsletter, we review a recent ruling by the Tenth Circuit Court of Appeals concerning the application of controlled group principles to the building...more
Editor's Overview - This month we feature three key developments. First, we review the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Gobeille v. Liberty Mut. Ins. Co., 136 S. Ct. 936, 947 (2016) wherein the Supreme Court held that a...more
A group of related private equity (“PE”) funds were found liable for a bankrupt portfolio company’s pension plan debts in the latest and most worrisome decision in the long-running Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England...more
Previously, we wrote about the First Circuit decision that a private equity fund constituted a “trade or business” under ERISA as amended by the Multeimployer Pension Plan Amendments Act (“MPPAA”). That dry description is...more
On March 28, 2016, a district court in Massachusetts found two private equity funds (under the Sun Capital Partners, Inc. umbrella) jointly and severally liable for withdrawal liability imposed on one of its underlying...more
Both the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”) and the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”) contain rules that aggregate trades and businesses under common control. For the most part, these rules are intended to...more
A U.S. District Court issued a ruling on March 28 that affects pension liabilities for private equity funds and their portfolio companies. Taken further, the ruling potentially changes fundamental rules for tax-qualified...more
District Court finds affiliated funds acted in de facto partnership which controlled portfolio company; Decision may be significant in making private equity acquisition structuring choices. As we previously reported, in...more
On July 24, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that a private equity investment fund was engaged in a "trade or business" under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended (ERISA)...more
On July 24, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit ruled in Sun Capital Partners III, LP v. New England Teamsters and Trucking Industry Pension Fund (No. 12-2312, 2013 WL 3814984) that a private equity...more
In our November 9, 2012, client alert, we examined an apparent victory for private equity firms resulting from the District Court of Massachusetts decision that held that two related private equity funds were not liable on a...more
On July 24, 2013, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit held that a private equity fund sponsored by Sun Capital Advisors constituted a “trade or business” for purposes of ERISA multiemployer pension withdrawal...more