Mealey's ERISA
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October 19, 2023
Dismissal Of ERISA Claim Over Record-Keeping Fees Disputed In 3rd Circuit Briefs
PHILADELPHIA — Arguing in part that “this case is even weaker than most,” a 401(k) plan sponsor and related appellees have urged the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to uphold dismissal of an Employee Retirement Income Security Act complaint over allegedly excessive record-keeping fees.
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October 19, 2023
PCMA Urges 10th Circuit To Deny En Banc Rehearing In PBM Law Preemption Row
DENVER — Arguing in part that the appellees’ “proffered reasons” why the case is exceptionally important “rely on mischaracterization and unmoored rhetoric,” the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) has opposed en banc rehearing of an appeal in which a 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act preempts four parts of an Oklahoma law pertaining to pharmaceutical benefit managers (PBMs).
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October 19, 2023
Class, Amici Weigh In On Rehearing Bid In ERISA Prohibited Transaction Row
SAN FRANCISCO — Contending that the appellees’ “assertion that recordkeeping and other agreements for necessary services are not subject to” the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s prohibited-transaction provision “makes no sense,” a certified class of retirement plan participants on Oct. 18 urged the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals to deny a petition for panel or en banc rehearing.
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October 17, 2023
Former Twitter Employees File Amended ERISA Suit For Severance Benefits
SAN FRANCISCO — Adding a new Employee Retirement Income Security Act claim and allegations of “a campaign of deception” and benefits accruing to the company and Elon Musk instead of participants, former Twitter employees filed an amended complaint in California federal court over severance benefits they claim a putative class was promised.
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October 16, 2023
U.S. High Court Denies Review Bid In ERISA Effective Vindication Row
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 16 declined to review a ruling in which the Third Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals ruled a nonseverable class action waiver “unenforceable because it requires [respondent Marlow Henry] to waive statutory remedies” under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
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October 11, 2023
10th Circuit Won’t Rehear ERISA Case Where Panel Ordered Claim Reprocessing
DENVER — A ruling directing remand for claim reprocessing in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case involving coverage of residential treatment for mental health and substance use will stand, with a 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel issuing an Oct. 10 order denying insureds’ petition for panel or en banc rehearing.
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October 10, 2023
Trustees File Notice Of Appeal In ERISA Row Over Imputed Withdrawal Liability
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The trustees of a multiemployer pension plan filed an Oct. 9 notice of appeal to the District of Columbia Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals for a ruling dismissing their lawsuit against a Bermuda insurance and reinsurance company over $934 million in withdrawal liability.
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October 10, 2023
5th Circuit Says Former NFL Player Not Entitled To Additional Disability Benefits
NEW ORLEANS — Even though the denial of a claim for additional disability benefits under the National Football League (NFL) plan seems “disturbing,” the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals said reversal of a district court’s ruling in favor of an ex-NFL player must be reversed because the former player failed to show that he had any changed circumstances that would entitle him to additional disability benefits under the plan.
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October 10, 2023
High Court Won’t Review ERISA ESOP Case Involving Effective Vindication Exception
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Oct. 10 denied a certiorari petition concerning a ruling in which a 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel upheld application of the effective vindication exception in declining to compel arbitration because a provision “directly conflicts with” statutory remedies available under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
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October 10, 2023
4th Circuit Denies Rehearing In ERISA Case Involving Equitable Remedy Question
RICHMOND, Va. — The Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals has denied a petition for panel or en banc rehearing of an Employee Retirement Income Security Act case over denial of a heart transplant in which a panel partly vacated dismissal, focusing on the question of when monetary relief is equitable and splitting on an issue involving interpretation of a 2016 U.S. Supreme Court decision.
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October 10, 2023
9th Circuit Panel Won’t Revive $75M ERISA Suit Against Insurers Under Bristol
PASADENA, Calif. — In an unpublished memorandum disposition rejecting the appellant’s reliance on Bristol SL Holdings, Inc. v. Cigna Health & Life Ins. Co., a Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel ruled in part that a debt collector “lacks derivative authority to bring [Employee Retirement Income Security Act] claims as a second assignee.”
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October 09, 2023
California Federal Judge Won’t Dismiss ERISA Fees, Funds Lawsuit
OAKLAND, Calif. — Repeatedly citing Hughes v. Northwestern Univ. (Hughes II), a California federal judge denied a motion to dismiss a putative class case in which 401(k) plan participants assert an imprudence claim under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act over record-keeping fees and certain fund offerings.
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October 09, 2023
DOL Announces Settlement Regarding Cross-Plan Offsetting For ERISA Plans
NEW YORK — Under a settlement agreement with the acting secretary of Labor regarding a practice known as cross-plan offsetting, EmblemHealth Inc. has agreed to provide prospective and retrospective relief regarding its administration of health plans covered by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
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October 09, 2023
Class: $61M Settlement Would Be ‘Largest Ever’ In ERISA Proprietary Funds Case
BOSTON — Saying it would be “the largest ever in an [Employee Retirement Income Security Act] case alleging that a retirement plan improperly offered proprietary funds,” plaintiffs on Oct. 6 moved in Massachusetts federal court for preliminary approval of a $61 million class settlement with General Electric Co. (GE) and related defendants.
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October 09, 2023
Panel Orders Response To Rehearing Petition In Oklahoma PBM Law Case
DENVER — The 10th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel that ruled that all challenged parts of an Oklahoma law pertaining to pharmaceutical benefit managers (PBMs) are preempted by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act has directed the Pharmaceutical Care Management Association (PCMA) to respond to a petition for rehearing en banc.
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October 09, 2023
$6.1M Class Settlement Proposed In ERISA Case Over Alleged Mismanagement
BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Plaintiffs in an Employee Retirement Income Security Act suit over alleged mismanagement of a retirement plan have moved in Alabama federal court for preliminary approval of a $6.1 million class settlement with PNC Financial Services Group Inc. that they say “represents roughly 7.8% of the estimated maximum full recovery.”
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October 06, 2023
1st Circuit Panel Says Termination Of Disability Pension Benefits Was Reasonable
BOSTON — The First Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals affirmed a district court’s finding that the termination of disability pension benefits was reasonable because the pension plan made numerous attempts to verify the claimant’s contention that he did not engage in disqualifying employment while receiving the benefits.
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October 06, 2023
New York Federal Judge Says Questions Of Fact Exist In Disability Benefits Suit
NEW YORK — A New York federal judge denied motions for summary judgment filed by a disability claimant and a disability insurer after determining that genuine disputes of material fact exist over the claimant’s job duties and the medical opinions regarding the claimant’s disabling conditions.
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October 06, 2023
LTD Benefits Reinstated; Claimant Presented Evidence Supporting Disability
PORTLAND, Ore. — A disability claimant’s long-term disability (LTD) benefits were reinstated by an Oregon federal judge because the claimant presented the disability insurer with requested evidence that supports a finding that she was disabled from performing the duties of her occupation.
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October 06, 2023
New York Federal Judge Transfers Disability Claimant’s Suit To Utah Federal Court
NEW YORK — A New York federal judge transferred a disability claimant’s wrongful denial of benefits suit to Utah federal court after determining that Utah is the more appropriate venue because the disability claimant and the claimant’s treating physicians are all located in Utah.
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October 06, 2023
Disability Plan Is ERISA Plan; Safe Harbor Doesn’t Apply, Judge Rules
CLEVELAND — A disability plan is governed by the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, a federal judge in Ohio ruled, concluding that the plan did not fall under ERISA’s safe harbor exemption because the employer initially paid the plan premiums and those payments were not illusory despite the employer’s issuance of a Form 1099 to the disability claimant.
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October 06, 2023
Fees Reduced, Costs Denied In ERISA Disability Case That Settled
MADISON, Wis. — A federal judge in Wisconsin reduced the attorney fees awarded to a disability claimant who sued to have her long-term disability benefits reinstated because the case settled before dispositive motions were filed and found that the issuer of the policy should not be responsible for increased costs resulting from the claimant’s “halting, piecemeal approach to recovering her attorney fees.”
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October 06, 2023
9th Circuit Sets Argument In 2nd Appeal Of ERISA Parity Case Over Coverage
PASADENA, Calif. — Oral argument in the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals is scheduled for Oct. 19 in an insured’s appeal challenging dismissal of his putative class case over coverage of mental health and substance use disorder claims, the docket shows.
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October 05, 2023
DOL, Plaintiffs Wrangle Over Recommendation In Fiduciary Status Test Row
DALLAS — After the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) responded to their objections, plaintiffs who sued over the DOL’s “new interpretation” of a test for whether financial professionals are acting as investment advice fiduciaries under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act on Oct. 4 continued to urge a Texas federal court to vacate that interpretation in its entirety.
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October 05, 2023
Plan Administrator Seeks Summary Judgment In ERISA Account-Stripping Row
NEW YORK — Moving in New York federal court for summary judgment in a case over whether it and a record-keeper should have acted differently to keep a fraudster from stripping the plaintiff’s account, a retirement plan administrator argues in part that the record “contains zero evidence that [it] did or failed to do anything that constituted a fiduciary breach or that caused Plaintiff’s loss.”