A rapidly growing line of ERISA cases seeks to impose fiduciary standards of conduct—developed by courts largely in the retirement plan context—to health plan design choices. The most recent, Barbich et al. v. Northwestern University et al., No. 1:25-cv-06849 (N.D. Ill.) filed on June 20, 2025, involves a new and potentially disruptive twist: plaintiffs
The California wildfires were officially declared a federal disaster by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on January 7, 2025. Plan sponsors and participants continue to navigate the financial and administrative impacts of these events. During this unpredictable time, plan sponsors may be able to provide various forms of relief to impacted participants. Plan sponsors
On March 28, 2025, two neighboring district courts issued sharply contrasting decisions on constitutional standing in lawsuits challenging pension risk transfers under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”). The United States District Court for the District of Columbia, in Camire et al. v. Alcoa USA Corp. (“Alcoa Decision”)
In a closely watched ERISA case, the United States District Court for the District of Colorado has issued an order affirming the Magistrate Judge’s ruling in Harrison v. Envision Management Holding, Inc. Board of Directors et al (Case No. 21-cv-00304), concerning the discoverability of Department of Labor (“DOL”) interview reports plaintiffs had obtained under a
A recently filed lawsuit is a good reminder that self-insured health plan fiduciaries have a fiduciary duty to ensure that their health plans are being administered according to the plan’s terms and in compliance with law, while defraying the reasonable expenses of administering the plan. In discharging this responsibility, plan fiduciaries must oversee any party
Recent Decision Places Spotlight on Coordination Between DOL and Plaintiffs’ Firms
Defending ERISA claims against an enterprising plaintiffs’ bar is challenging enough. That task becomes even more challenging when the Department of Labor (“DOL”) is working behind the scenes to support private-sector litigants. For example, the DOL has the power to issue subpoenas for documents
Earlier this year, current and former participants of two ERISA-governed health plans filed complaints alleging the same novel legal theory: that plan fiduciaries violated ERISA by mismanaging the plan’s prescription drug benefits. In both complaints, plaintiffs alleged that the mismanagement was caused in part by the plans paying excessive and unreasonable fees to their respective
In a previous blog post, we provided an overview concerning whether plan service provider agreements may be required to be disclosed to participants under Section 104(b)(4) of ERISA. A recent district court decision in California puts a renewed spotlight on this issue for employers and plan administrators who may receive these types of document
Potentially signaling a new wave of litigation, AT&T Inc. and AT&T Services, Inc. (AT&T) were hit with a class-action lawsuit on March 11, 2024 filed in the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts relating to the 2023 transfer of $8 billion of their pension liabilities – covering approximately 96,000 participants in AT&T’s