The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals ruled yesterday that, contrary to prior Circuit precedent, the presence of an arbitration provision in an employee benefits plan could compel arbitration. See, Dorman v. Charles Schwab Corp., Case No. 18-15281 (9th Cir., Aug. 20, 2019). The plaintiff had filed a class action suit in district court alleging that […]
Despite the protections ERISA offers a beneficiary, every now and then relief available outside of the statute tempts a plaintiff to argue against ERISA qualification – in this instance, the plaintiff was a former President and CEO of Safelite Group, Inc. In 2005, Safelite’s Board of Directors created the Safelite Group, Inc. 2005 Transaction Incentive […]
In a sprawling trial opinion following a bench trial, the Northern District of California Federal District Court held that United Behavioral Health’s standard of care guidelines from at least 2013 through 2017 failed to comply with guaranteed terms of insurance, various laws of several states, and overall to “set forth a unified standard that is […]
While “ERISA and the securities laws ultimately have differing objectives pursued under entirely separate statutory schemes designed to protect different constituencies[,]” recent cases have explored the possibility of liability outside of the traditional “marketplace harm” for corporate practices which manipulated securities prices. Jander v. Retirement Plans Committee of IBM, 910 F.3d 620, 632 (2d Cir. […]
Admittedly, the title may be a bit misleading – there is no foolproof way to shield yourself from pension errors. Pensions and other retirement benefits are complicated beasts, often tracking 30+ years of an employee’s career history across multiple positions, companies, plan amendments and, typically, through at least one merger or acquisition. Fortunately, there are a […]