Disability Plan Is ERISA Plan; Safe Harbor Doesn’t Apply, Judge Rules

(October 6, 2023, 8:20 AM EDT) -- 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....