"The new year could see multiple circuits release first-of-their-kind opinions in [ERISA] cases. The US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit is poised to be the first appellate court to address the explosion of litigation centering on 401(k) contributions forfeited by departing workers. The First Circuit has the chance to hand down the initial appellate ruling in a recent series of cases targeting employers that charge higher health-care plan fees to employees who smoke. The Fourth Circuit is also primed to weigh in on an emerging legal theory targeting employers that remove workers from their pension plans by purchasing annuities from a controversial insurance company."  MORE >>