401(k) Retirement Benefit Plan Litigation: Recent Cases and Issues for Plan Sponsors and Fiduciaries

Strafford

This CLE course will discuss the new wave of retirement plan litigation involving fiduciary conduct relating to 401(k) plans. The program will review the cases filed to date, legal theories raised, defenses, settlements, dismissals, and the current state of the litigation. The panel will also discuss the differences in claims, theories, and causes of action between 401(k) plans and offer techniques for managing lawsuits stemming from investment offerings, fees, what to do to potentially avoid these types of litigation, and more.

Description

Plan fiduciaries of 401(k) plans are increasingly the subject of suits alleging breach of fiduciary duty due to excessive fees, imprudent selection and monitoring of investment options, and underperforming plan investment options.

Recent cases include claims that fiduciaries should have leveraged the plan's assets to qualify for lower-cost share classes of plan offerings and lower-cost administrative and investment management services, chosen less costly or better-performing investment options for the plan, and pursued reduced recordkeeping fees. Furthermore, recent claims also allege the fiduciaries selected investment options that consistently underperformed.

Listen as our authoritative panel of ERISA litigators reviews the recent wave of retirement plan litigation involving 401(k) plans. The panel will discuss theories, defenses, dismissals, and the current state of the litigation. The panel will analyze the differences in claims, theories, and causes of action between 401(k) plans as well as offer techniques for avoiding and managing lawsuits.

Outline

1. Overview of litigation trends and developments
   • Dismissed claims
   • Pending litigation
2. Defense perspective
   • Theories of liability
   • Defenses
3. Best practices for counsel and fiduciaries

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