Pension Calculation Dispute Thrown Out on
Appeal
October 9, 2009 (PLANSPONSOR.com - Three pension
participants who sued their employer over a pension
calculation dispute can't pursue their claims because they
have no written proof the employer misrepresented plan rules,
a court has ruled.
The 2
nd
U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in issuing that decision,
upheld a ruling by U.S. District Judge Naomi Reice
Buchwald
of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District
of New York.
Buchwald had thrown out the suit by
participants
Alex H. Ladouceur, Ronald J. Ivans, and David
Silvers after they were unable to produce any documents
proving Credit Lyonnais executives promised that their
pension accruals would begin when they began working for
a
Credit Lyonnais subsidiary and not at a later date
when the subsidiary was merged with the parent
organization.
Plaintiffs' lawyers appealed part of
Buchwald's ruling involving a fiduciary breach claim
under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA),
but
Chief Judge Dennis Jacobs, writing for the 2
nd
Circuit, said case law on the issue of relying on ERISA in
such circumstances still requires written proof of the
misstatement.
The 2nd Circuit ruling is available
here
.
Fred Schneyer
editors@plansponsor.com