Tag: retirement plan litigation

The less than $250 million plan is accused of failing to employ a prudent and loyal process in evaluating investment and administrative fees.

The judge determined that the plaintiffs’ allegations sufficiently suggest the prospect that a fiduciary breach occurred, and as a result they have been given leave to amend their complaint.

The case is similar to other cases that have been filed on the federal level challenging a pension’s “church plan” status, but this complaint alleges that the actions taken by the Archdiocese violate New Jersey contract and trust law.

Though the contention in the lawsuit was over Eaton Vance’s use of mostly proprietary funds in its 401(k) plan, the settlement agreement only calls for a $3.45 million payment and no change to the fund menu.

However, in a dissenting opinion, Senior Judge Jane Richards Roth says cases such as this one should be carefully scrutinized in order not to permit implausible allegations to result in a large settlement, under which a substantial portion of the funds are diverted to attorneys’ fees.

A mixed-bag district court ruling in Colorado closely examines the investment policy statements and contracts which governed the relationship between an advisory firm and a retirement plan committee facing an ERISA lawsuit.

The case made it to the Supreme Court, which ruled plans maintained by principal-purpose organizations can qualify as “church plans;” however, it did not rule that the hospital was a principal-purpose organization.

However, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals did remand back to a district court the calculation of interest on the $7,367,382.13 in damages awarded.

The complaint suggests defendants “larded the plan with excessively expensive sub-advised accounts” that paid excessive fees to the recordkeeper John Hancock.

Aside from monetary relief, the settlement calls for Vanderbilt to issue a request for proposals (RFP) for a new recordkeeper and stipulates factors to consider when evaluating funds in the 403(b) plan’s investment menu.

The union plan’s board of trustees has agreed to pay $8.75 million and issue a request for proposals for recordkeeping and administrative services.

The court has ruled that the litigation can proceed to trial because SafeWay’s summary dismissal argument that the plaintiffs’ case is premised entirely on hindsight “misses the point.”

Plaintiffs in the case allege that CIGNA is not following new calculations ordered by a federal court to remedy its breach of providing inadequate disclosures to participants about its conversion from a traditional defined benefit plan to a cash balance plan.

The lawsuit, filed on behalf of participants invested in Boeing stock in all of Boeing’s defined contribution plans, alleges the firm breached its fiduciary duty by failing to inform participants of potential market losses due to 737 MAX airplane issues.

In addition to a $23.6 million payment, the settlement agreement includes additional terms relating to a review of investment options in the plan and conducting a request for proposals (RFP) for a new recordkeeper.

Participants in Chevron’s DC plan say the 9th Circuit applied unnecessarily high pleading standards, “precluding petitioners from pursuing claims that have been recognized as sufficiently plead in other circuits.”

The question in the lawsuit, according to a federal judge, is whether the plaintiff has standing to sue, for one, because she signed a settlement agreement with the university, and also, the defendants claim, she has not proved harm in her challenges to investments used in the university's 403(b) plan.

The plan sponsor was previously ordered to make reforms such as using lower-cost share classes and conducting an open recordkeeping RFP; the final settlement includes $55 million in monetary compensation.

The parties anticipate that they will be in a position to submit a formal settlement motion to the court within 45 days.