Mealey's ERISA
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December 04, 2023
2nd Circuit Nixes Bid For Interlocutory Appeal Of ERISA Class Certification
NEW YORK — A Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel denied a petition for interlocutory appeal in which a life insurer and related entities argued that the certified class in the case over calculation of benefits was “deliberately gerrymandered” and that “there was a complete disconnect between the expert evidence and the legal basis for Plaintiffs’ claim.”
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December 04, 2023
Petitioners Argue ‘New Burdens’ In Seeking Review Of 10th Circuit ERISA Ruling
WASHINGTON, D.C. — Challenging two aspects of a 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruling concerning long-term residential treatment facility coverage and arguing that the opinion improperly “imposes new burdens on health benefits plans,” one such plan and the insurer that administers it have petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court for a writ of certiorari.
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December 04, 2023
Class Deal Of Nearly $4M Gets Preliminary OK In ERISA Fees, Funds Lawsuit
ATLANTA — A Georgia federal judge on Dec. 1 granted preliminary approval of a $3,925,000 class settlement in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case where the plaintiffs allege mismanagement of a 401(k) plan.
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December 04, 2023
$250,000 ERISA Deal Would Let Plaintiff Appeal Dismissed Investment Claims
SAN FRANCISCO — Under a preliminary approval motion in California federal court, a certified class would settle the remaining record-keeping claims in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case for $250,000 while reserving the right to appeal the June 2021 dismissal of investment claims.
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December 01, 2023
$6M Class Settlement Proposed In ERISA Case Over Former ESOP Sponsored By Bank
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Dozens of individuals would receive an estimated average net settlement amount of “a little over $30,000” under a $6 million class deal concerning the Virginia Community Bankshares Inc. Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) that a Virginia federal court has been asked to preliminarily approve.
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December 01, 2023
After Prohibited Transaction Ruling, Class Asks 2nd Circuit To Rehear ERISA Case
NEW YORK — Arguing in part that the challenged decision focusing on a prohibited transaction claim “severely weakens [the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s] high fiduciary standard,” retirement plan participants whose unsuccessful appeal essentially sought revival of the bulk of their class action petitioned the Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals for panel or en banc rehearing.
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November 30, 2023
Judge: Conclusory Claims About Assignment Of Rights Can’t Save ERISA Action
TRENTON, N.J. — A chiropractic and acupuncture services provider’s conclusory statements about assignment of rights do not suffice for Employee Retirement Income Security Act claims, and any amended complaint should lay out the specific contract provisions the insurer allegedly violated, a federal judge in New Jersey said in dismissing a case on Nov. 29.
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November 28, 2023
10th Circuit Revives ERISA Claim For Violation Of Parity Act In Coverage Row
DENVER — Reversing and remanding dismissal of a Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA or Parity Act) claim in a case over residential mental health treatment, a 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled in part that the insureds “plausibly alleged a disparity between the treatment limitations applied to benefits for mental health or substance abuse care compared to those applied to benefits for medical or surgical care.”
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November 28, 2023
Settlement Of ERISA Case Over Hedge Fund Gets Final OK; $10M Goes To Attorneys
NEW YORK — A $30 million Employee Retirement Income Security Act class settlement has won final approval, with a New York federal judge also granting requests for attorney fees of $10 million and a case contribution award of $30,000 to the plaintiff who sued Verizon Communications Inc. and related entities over what she calls “a hedge fund ‘fund of funds.’”
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November 27, 2023
Judge Orders Insurer To Fully Compensate Man For Proton Beam Therapy
ALEXANDRIA, La. — An insurer found liable for proton beam therapy (PBT) treatments a man paid for out of pocket after being denied coverage may not retroactively try to compensate him at in-network rates, a federal judge in Louisiana said in granting a motion to enforce judgment and ordering the insurer to fully compensate him after the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed the award.
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November 22, 2023
$4.5M Deal Proposed In ERISA Lawsuit Over Proprietary Index Funds
NEW YORK — A New York federal court has been asked to preliminarily approve a $4.5 million class settlement in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case over the selection and retention of proprietary index fund products.
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November 22, 2023
Class Settlement Of Nearly $4M Proposed In ERISA Revenue-Sharing Row
ATLANTA — Plaintiffs in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case alleging mismanagement of a 401(k) plan have asked a Georgia federal court for preliminary approval of a $3,925,000 settlement under which they say an estimated 40,000 class members would get an average of about $100 apiece before expenses and attorney fees.
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November 22, 2023
Plaintiff Loses Fiduciary Exception Dispute In ERISA Privilege Ruling
SAN DIEGO — Finding that fiduciary exception to attorney-client privilege does not apply to the communications in issue in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act case, a California federal magistrate judge ruled for the defendants in a discovery dispute involving a qualified domestic relations order (QDRO).
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November 21, 2023
DOL Files Amicus Brief In ERISA Effective Vindication Row Involving ESOP
NEW ORLEANS — Urging a ruling like those issued in three other circuits under the “effective vindication” exception, acting U.S. Department of Labor Secretary Julie Su filed an amicus curiae brief asking the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to uphold a decision declining to compel arbitration in a putative Employee Retirement Income Security Act class case.
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November 20, 2023
9th Circuit Finds No Error In Judgment Entered In Favor Of Disability Insurer
SAN JOSE, Calif. — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s judgment in favor of a disability insurer, rejecting the disability claimant’s argument that the lower court adopted new rationales that were not included in the administrative record in finding that the insurer’s termination of benefits was reasonable based on the evidence.
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November 17, 2023
Judge Directs Recalculation In ERISA Suit Over ‘Leveled’ Retirement Benefits
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Saying he denied both parties’ motions for judgment as a matter of law, an Ohio federal judge directed recalculation of a retired UPS driver’s benefits in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit over pension benefits that the retiree opted to receive in the form of the “Social Security Leveling Option.”
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November 16, 2023
9th Circuit Won’t Rehear ERISA Dispute Over Fees And Prohibited Transactions
SAN FRANCISCO — The Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has denied a motion for panel or en banc rehearing in which the appellees said the ruling that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s prohibited transaction provision requires a plan administrator to consider third-party compensation its record-keeper received “departs from Supreme Court precedent and creates a circuit split.”
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November 16, 2023
4th Circuit Dismisses Appeal In ERISA Case Involving Retiree Benefit Changes
RICHMOND, Va. — Saying in a Nov. 15 unpublished per curiam opinion that the challenged ruling “is neither a final order nor an appealable interlocutory or collateral order,” a Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel dismissed an appeal involving Employee Retirement Income Security Act claims over changes to retiree health benefits.
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November 15, 2023
2nd Circuit Tackles ERISA’s Prohibited Transaction Provision, Won’t Revive Case
NEW YORK — In a Nov. 14 opinion upholding two challenged rulings concerning Cornell University retirement plans, a Second Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel partly accepted an invitation to adopt an “expansive” interpretation of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s prohibited transaction provision regarding a party in interest.
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November 13, 2023
Lipedema Sufferers Keep Insurance Class, Can’t Secure Summary Judgment
SAN FRANCISCO — Recent precedent does not require decertifying an Employee Retirement Income Security Act class action seeking reprocessing of lipedema sufferers’ liposuction coverage claims, but because a dispute remains over whether the insurer categorically denied coverage, summary judgment for the insureds is also inappropriate, a federal judge in California said.
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November 13, 2023
9th Circuit Upholds Dismissal Of Mechanics’ Suit Against Airline And Unions
SAN FRANCISCO — Ruling in part that Employee Retirement Income Security Act claims were properly dismissed, a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel upheld dismissal of airline mechanics’ putative class suit over disputes involving a collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
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November 10, 2023
Alabama Federal Judge Refuses To Deviate From Precedent In Disability Suit
JASPER, Ala. — An Alabama federal judge denied motions to determine the appropriate standard of review in a disability benefits dispute filed by the disability insurer and disability claimant after determining that neither of the parties persuaded the court to deviate from the precedent set forth in an 11th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ suit when determining the appropriate standard of review.
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November 09, 2023
Panel Affirms Disability Insurer’s Benefits Termination Was Arbitrary, Capricious
PHILADELPHIA — The Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals on Nov. 8 affirmed a district court’s ruling that a disability insurer acted arbitrarily and capriciously in terminating a disability claimant’s benefits because the insurer wrongfully reclassified the claimant’s occupation as an internal medical specialist after more than 10 years of correctly classifying the claimant’s occupation as a gastroenterologist.
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November 10, 2023
Panel Refuses To Review District Court Decision In Disability Benefits Dispute
PHILADELPHIA — While acknowledging that a district court’s appointment of an independent medical expert to examine a disability claimant suffering from fibromyalgia and rheumatoid arthritis is “highly unusual,” the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals refused to grant a disability insurer’s petition for a writ of mandamus because the district court indicated that the purpose of the appointment is to reinforce the district court’s belief that remand of the claim is the appropriate form of relief.
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November 10, 2023
Airline Pilot Files Complaint Seeking Disability Benefits For Long-Haul COVID-19
PHILADELPHIA — A disability insurer abused its discretion and breached its duty to a commercial airline pilot suffering from the effects of long-haul COVID-19 when it denied the pilot’s claim for long-term disability (LTD) benefits, the pilot claims in a complaint filed in Pennsylvania federal court.