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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

  • work Practice Area

    ERISA

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Monday, December 21, 2020

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$347.00
CLE
ALL

This CLE course will provide ERISA counsel and plan fiduciaries a comprehensive understanding of the risks and challenges of a defined benefit plan for sponsors and administrators. The panel will analyze key substantive and procedural issues addressed in recent U.S. Supreme Court rulings and outline effective strategies for defending and avoiding fiduciary duty claims.

Faculty

Ada W. Dolph
Partner
Seyfarth Shaw LLP

With 17 years of experience as a labor and employment litigator with Seyfarth Shaw, Ms. Dolph is an advisor to clients in the airline, retail, healthcare and manufacturing industries. Her practice focuses on advice and counsel and innovative litigation involving complex procedural defenses, including preemption of state law claims under ERISA, Railway Labor Act, Airline Deregulation Act, Federal Aviation Act, and the Servicemembers' Group Life Insurance Act (SGLIA); Article III and statutory standing; statute of limitations; and administrative exhaustion requirements, among others; Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA) claims, prevailing as lead counsel in the first BIPA case to be heard by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit; whistleblower claims under state law, AIR21, Dodd-Frank and Sarbanes-Oxley; discrimination claims in state and federal jurisdictions across the country, including under Title VII, ADA, Section 1981, and the ADEA, and their state law counterparts, including systemic actions brought by the EEOC; ERISA single, multi-plaintiff and class action matters involving denial of health, disability, life, pension and 401(k) benefits, including defense of high profile “stock drop,” retiree medical and 401(k fee class actions.

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Clarissa A. Kang
Director
Trucker Huss

Ms. Kang has handled a broad spectrum of litigation, including cases involving benefit claims, fiduciary issues, plan administration, multiemployer plans, withdrawal liability, delinquent contributions, plan reimbursement and subrogation, non-ERISA benefit plans (such as governmental plans and church plans), and class actions.

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Brian D. Netter
Partner
Mayer Brown LLP

Mr. Netter is a member of the firm’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution Practice and is Co-Leader of the Supreme Court & Appellate Group. His practice consists of briefing and arguing high profile and legally complex cases in trial and appellate courts. Mr. Netter’s experience covers a broad range of substantive areas and he frequently litigates cases involving administrative law, constitutional law and ERISA. He is a frequent commentator on the Supreme Court’s ERISA docket.

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Description

Fiduciary responsibilities of sponsors and administrators for benefit plans require a duty of prudence under ERISA. Failure to follow best practices for defined benefit plans can result in litigation and millions in legal fees and settlements.

Most cases where retirement plan participants have sued plan sponsors for mismanaging their retirement plan under Section 502(a)(2) of ERISA have involved 401(k) and other defined contribution plans. These claims generally assert that employers acting as plan administrators engage in self-dealing and/or other practices that violate ERISA's fiduciary standards. Claims include imprudently selecting investment options and administrative services or funds that earn high fees for the plan sponsor while performing worse than other competitors.

However, the U.S. Supreme Court recently ruled in favor of the plan sponsor in Thole v. U.S. Bank NA, which substantially raised the bar for plaintiffs asserting claims under ERISA against defined benefit plans, and could have ramifications for standing in the 401(k) and defined contribution plan context as well. In a split decision, the Supreme Court held that participants in a defined benefits plan who continue to receive their monthly benefits have no standing to sue their plan under ERISA. The court opened the door for participant claims where plan mismanagement substantially increases the risk of the defined benefit plan failing.

Despite the Supreme Court ruling, ERISA counsel and fiduciaries should ensure that plan documents, investment selection, fee arrangements, and administrative processes minimize breach of fiduciary duty claims for defined benefit plans.

Listen as our panel provides an in-depth analysis of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling and its implications to plan participants, fiduciaries, and administrators. The panel will also discuss the necessary methods of selecting plan investments and monitoring fee structures, as well as offer best practices for defending and avoiding breach of fiduciary duty claims.

Outline

  1. Fiduciary liability for defined benefit plans
  2. Participant claims and recent SCOTUS decision
  3. Key Issues for defined contribution plans
  4. Best practices for fiduciaries and plan administrators

Benefits

The panel will discuss these and other critical issues:

  • Understanding the fiduciary responsibilities of defined benefit plan administration under ERISA
  • The extent of fiduciary duty liability under ERISA after recent cases
  • How to identify those issues that could result in fiduciary litigation
  • The impact of SCOTUS decision on defined contribution plans
  • Best practices in avoiding and handling litigation premised on breach of fiduciary duty claims