We have previously blogged on the flurry of class action lawsuits challenging 401(k) plan investments in the BlackRock LifePath Index Target Date Funds. District courts around the country—seven of them in total—have granted motions to dismiss claims by 401(k) plan
Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Blog
The View from Proskauer on Developments in the World of Employee Benefits, Executive Compensation & ERISA Litigation
Latest from Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Blog
Ninth Circuit: Changes to a Services Agreement Require Consideration of Indirect Compensation
A recent Ninth Circuit decision has generated considerable controversy amongst employee benefits practitioners by holding that plan fiduciaries engaged in prohibited transactions when they amended the plan’s existing recordkeeping contract to add brokerage and investment advisory services. In so ruling,…
Prohibition Against Non-Competes Expands in California
On September 1, 2023, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Senate Bill 699, which amends California Business & Professions Code Section 16600 to prohibit an employer from entering into or attempting to enforce a non-compete agreement regardless of whether the…
District Court Replaces Plan Trustees With Independent Fiduciary
By Joseph Clark & Neil V. Shah
In Su v. Fensler, No. 22-cv-01030, 2023 WL 5152640 (N.D. Ill. Aug. 10, 2023), the court granted the Department of Labor’s motion for a preliminary injunction to replace with an independent fiduciary the trustees of the United Employee Benefit Fund,…
Tenth Circuit Adopts “Meaningful Benchmark” Pleading Standard in Dismissing Challenges to 401(k) Plan Fees
In a case of first impression in the Tenth Circuit, the Court recently joined the chorus of circuit courts in holding that a 401(k) plan participant alleging excessive investment management or recordkeeping fees must assert a “meaningful benchmark” in order…
IRS Offers Two-Year Transition Period to Implement SECURE 2.0 Roth Catch-Up Requirement
On Friday, the IRS released Notice 2023-62, which addresses certain pressing implementation issues related to the SECURE 2.0 requirement that catch-up contributions for participants with FICA wages of more than $145,000 during the prior calendar year from the employer…
Fifth Circuit Supports Restrictions on Medication Abortion, But No Immediate Impact on Health Plans (For Now)
Last week, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit affirmed in part and vacated in part a Texas federal district court order revoking the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of the drug mifepristone, which is used…
Two District Courts Reach Conflicting Holdings Over Excessive Recordkeeping Fee Claims
Two District Courts have reached conflicting decisions on the same day when ruling on substantially similar allegations that plan fiduciaries violated ERISA by paying too much for recordkeeping services, with one court dismissing the claims and the other court allowing…
Sixth Circuit Highlights Importance of the Plan Document
A recent decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit (Patterson v. United HealthCare Ins. Co., No. 22-3167, 2023 WL 4882436 (6th Cir. Aug. 1, 2023)) illustrates the importance of clearly describing key plan…
Proposed MHPAEA Regulations Flowchart: Understanding the New Framework for Non-Quantitative Treatment Limitations
In late July, the Departments of Labor, Treasury, and Health and Human Services released proposed regulations implementing the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 (MHPAEA). Readers of our previous blog will recall that the proposed regulations include…