Judge Nixes Dismissal Of ERISA Class Action That Defines 'Actuarial Equivalent'

Mealey's (August 10, 2020, 2:04 PM EDT) -- BOSTON — A retired worker can go ahead with class action claims that the joint and survivor annuity he receives is not the "actuarial equivalent" of other annuity forms offered by his retirement plan, a Massachusetts federal judge ruled Aug. 5, both rejecting a motion to dismiss the retiree's lawsuit and noting that "actuarial equivalent" goes undefined in the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (Scott Belknap, et al. v. Partners Healthcare System Inc., No. 19-11437, D. Mass., 2020 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 139187)....