Archives: ERISA

Ninth Circuit Reverses Itself And Finds That At Least Some ERISA Claims Can Be Compelled To Arbitration

By Greg Mersol on August 23, 2019 Posted in ERISA

But Do You Really Want To In All Cases? The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) was the largest statute ever passed by Congress at the time it was enacted and has only grown further since then. In the 44 years that have followed its effective date, so too have grown the number … Continue Reading

Location, Location, Location. Washington Federal Court Looks To Where Benefit Plan Was Signed And Negotiated In Agreeing To Transfer ERISA Class Action To Georgia

By Gilbert Brosky on June 4, 2019 Posted in ERISA

Much like buying a home, location can mean everything when defending a class action. Therefore, it is common for defendants to try and transfer class actions to what is viewed as a more favorable jurisdiction when there is at least a significant connection with that forum. When this happens, courts apply a largely predictable set … Continue Reading

Ohio Federal Court Rejects Attempt to Certify Class Against Third-Party Plan Administrator Under ERISA § 502(a)(3)

By Gilbert Brosky on May 23, 2019 Posted in ERISA

Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) claims can potentially involve significant amounts in controversy, and in an effort to broaden the pool of potential defendants, ERISA plaintiffs are often fond of arguing that the Supreme Court’s Harris Trust decision makes a party’s status as an ERISA fiduciary or nonfiduciary irrelevant in determining liability under ERISA … Continue Reading

Ninth Circuit Finds ERISA Fiduciary Duty Claims Not Arbitrable

By Greg Mersol on August 13, 2018 Posted in ERISA

But decision leaves open many questions . . . With the Supreme Court’s Epic Systems decision laying to rest many of the primary arguments used to avoid arbitration, case law continues to develop regarding how arbitration may apply for claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). [We blogged the Epic Systems … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Class Claims Regarding Disability Benefits

By Greg Mersol on August 29, 2014 Posted in ERISA

ERISA benefit claims are frequently of only modest size individually, but can become overwhelming in a class context. A decision this week from the Sixth Circuit affirms the dismissal of a putative class-wide disability claim under a company pension plan. The case is noteworthy because the court addressed the merits of the plaintiff’s individual claim … Continue Reading

Florida District Court Rejects ERISA Claims Premised on Alleged FLSA Violations

By Greg Mersol on May 9, 2014 Posted in ERISA, FLSA, Retail, Rule 23

Plaintiffs in most class and collective actions try to plead their claims in such a way as to exert the maximum pressure against the employer. In some instances, that raises the issue of whether the plaintiff should assert one, clear claim or several. Having only one claim places the issues more starkly, but oftentimes plaintiffs … Continue Reading

New York District Court Dismisses Putative ERISA Class Alleging Illegal Kickbacks

By Greg Mersol on March 5, 2014 Posted in ERISA, Rule 23

Sometimes in the rush to meet Rule 23(a) and (b)’s requirements, what gets overlooked is whether there is any underlying claim in the first place. In a refreshing opinion, the Southern District of New York disposed of a claimed ERISA class action for the reason that, irrespective of any class allegations, the defendant was not … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Affirms Summary Judgment For Employer In Retiree Health Care Class Action

By Greg Mersol on September 28, 2012 Posted in ERISA

We’ve commented in this blog before about the Sixth Circuit’s holdings regarding retiree healthcare under collective bargaining agreements. Starting with the case of UAW v. Yard-Man, Inc., 716 F.2d 1476 (6th Cir. 1983), the Sixth Circuit began to apply an “inference” that collectively bargained retire welfare benefits, primarily paid health insurance, would “vest” and would … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Permits “Reasonable” Changes To Welfare Benefits Under Yard-Man

By Greg Mersol on September 17, 2012 Posted in ERISA

In 46 states within the U.S., a collective bargaining agreement, and the obligations it contains, expires on its expiration date. Thus, the parties must come to agreement as to the new terms at relatively regular intervals, taking into account market forces, changes in their relative bargaining positions, and their respective interests. However, in 1983, the … Continue Reading

Fourth Circuit Expands ERISA Equitable Remedies

By Greg Mersol on August 5, 2012 Posted in ERISA

Authorship credit: Paul S. Enockson Editor’s Note: This post is a joint submission to Baker Hostetler’s Class Action Lawsuit Defense blog. ERISA class action litigation differs in important respects from many other types of employment class actions, in part because of its unique remedial provisions and continuing issues involving the scope of recovery. … Continue Reading

Federal Court Dismisses Retirees’ Health Care Claims For Lack Of Standing

By Gilbert Brosky on April 20, 2012 Posted in ERISA

The Sixth Circuit has been a hotbed of class action litigation involving retiree healthcare under collectively bargained plans. Retirees seeking benefits have prevailed in many such cases based on the 1983 Sixth Circuit case of UAW v. Yard-Man, Inc., 716 F.2d 1476 (6th Cir. 1983). But what if an employer has only threatened to reduce … Continue Reading

ERISA Class Actions Still Being Certified Post-Dukes

By Greg Mersol on April 9, 2012 Posted in ERISA

Authorship credit: Paul S. Enockson ERISA class certification motions routinely cite cases for the proposition that ERISA cases are the paradigmatic example of cases that are appropriate for class certification. The United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio’s recent decision in Adams v. Anheuser-Busch Companies, Case No. 2:10-cv-826, provides continuing support for … Continue Reading

Plaintiffs Swallow Bitter Pill With Dismissal of Class Breach of ERISA Fiduciary Duty Claim for Alleged Wage and Hour Violations

By Jeffrey Vlasek on March 19, 2012 Posted in ERISA, Overtime Claims

The case of DeSilva v. North Shore-Long Island Jewish Health System, Inc., Case No. 10-CV-1341-JFB-ETB (E.D.N.Y. March 7, 2012), began small, like a lone cough one winter’s morning, before escalating into a full-blown cold, complete with hacking and wheezing. At first there were six plaintiffs working as nurses. After two amended complaints, however, the purported … Continue Reading

Court Applies Kentucky’s 15-Year Statute of Limitations for ERISA Class Action Claims To Recover Benefits Due Under Terms of Plan

By Scott McIntyre on December 1, 2011 Posted in ERISA

At present, most employment class actions relate to wage and hour issues, but there are still many (and frequently hugely expensive) ERISA class actions challenging a host of benefits issues. A recent case underscores that the threat of ERISA class action litigation can be exacerbated by a very long statute of limitations. ERISA does not … Continue Reading

Retiree Class Action Remanded To State Court For “Untimely-ish” Removal

By Todd Dawson on March 21, 2011 Posted in ERISA

A wise man (who we’d never heard of until searching for witty quotes with which to open this article) once said, “Procrastination is the bad habit of putting off until the day after tomorrow what should have been done the day before yesterday.” The UAW will undoubtedly attest to this notion following the decision earlier this year … Continue Reading

The Western District of Texas Shows Some True Grit By Refusing To Grant Conditional Certification

By Jeffrey Vlasek on January 10, 2011 Posted in ERISA, FLSA, Independent Contractors

In this day and age, finding a court to deny conditional certification of a proposed FLSA class is sometimes about as difficult as successfully remaking a classic Hollywood western with modern actors and sensibilities. But, just as the Coen Brothers’ True Grit continues to surprise audiences and critics alike as one of the finest remakes … Continue Reading

Court Grants Summary Judgment in Multidistrict Independent Contractor Cases

By Greg Mersol on January 5, 2011 Posted in ERISA, FLSA, Independent Contractors, Nonexempt Status, Wage and Hour

We’ve written at least three times now on the case of Dukes v. Wal-Mart, now pending before the United States Supreme Court, as it is the largest employment class action in history. Perhaps a relatively distant second is the collection of cases against FedEx Ground Package System, currently being handled through the multidistrict litigation docket in Northern Indiana. … Continue Reading

Class Decertified in Case of Former Sales Representatives Asserting ERISA Claims

By Gilbert Brosky on August 12, 2010 Posted in ERISA

A federal court in New York decertified a class former sales representatives who claimed that Defendant Linvatec Corp. violated ERISA when it denied severance benefits after the division where the representatives worked was outsourced. Thompson v. Linvatec Corp., No. 6:06-CV-00404 (N.D.N.Y. 6/22/2010). After reviewing the plan documents, the court narrowed the original class definition of … Continue Reading

Sixth Circuit Holds Class Members’ ERISA Claims Accrued When They Knew Their Benefits Changed

By Gilbert Brosky on August 8, 2010 Posted in ERISA

The Sixth Circuit recently reversed an injunction that required Caterpillar to pay lifetime health care costs to a subclass of 275 former employees upon finding the subclass members’ ERISA claims were time-barred. Winnett v. Caterpillar, Inc., No. 06-00235 (6th Cir. 6/22/2010). The plaintiffs filed their lawsuit on March 28, 2006 and claimed Caterpillar breached a … Continue Reading