"The proposed regulations reflect the DOL's position that group health plan fiduciaries have a duty to ensure the reasonableness of fees and that transparent fee disclosures should help them to evaluate PBM arrangements. ... [T]he DOL recognizes that negotiating PBM arrangements requires specialized expertise, and that most group health plans must work with benefits consultants or brokers who may have conflicts of interest due to payments or rebates they receive from PBMs. The proposed regulations ... do not provide guidance on how fiduciaries can use [the disclosures] to negotiate more favorable prescription drug prices." MORE >>
"The nation's highest court's consideration of a 401(k) suit involving alternative investments and the need for a 'meaningful benchmark' has been bumped till next term. While the justices recently agreed to extend briefing due dates in the case ... its absence on the court's April calendar indicates a delay, in this case till next term." [Anderson v. Intel Corp. Inv. Policy Comm., No. 22-16268 (9th Cir. May 22, 2025; cert. pet. granted Jan 16, 2026, No. 25-498)] MORE >>
"Managed accounts offer personalization and improved outcomes but raise cost-effectiveness concerns for sponsors. ROI comparison between managed accounts and education programs is needed for better decision-making. More due diligence is recommended before implementing managed account solutions in retirement plans." MORE >>
"[The Cunningham] opinion flagged a handful of tactics lower courts could use to weed out flawed cases, including ordering plaintiffs to address affirmative defenses early on, assessing attorneys' fees and sanctions, and carefully scrutinizing whether cases should be dismissed for lack of actionable injuries. Trial court judges have begun to follow the high court's advice, providing a potential roadmap for defendants' attorneys juggling the hundreds of would-be class suits filed under ERISA over the past several years." MORE >>
"While the new federal guidelines are aimed at reforming the PBM industry, they include significant new obligations for sponsors of employee benefit plans.... [P]lans need to consider the basic measures that they must take to comply with the new requirements, including amending PBM Agreements and requesting appropriate disclosures. More deeply, plan sponsors must reckon with the significant volume of data being provided by their PBMs." MORE >>
"The court held that [1] the plan validly consented to arbitration of the Section 502(a)(2) claim, [2] the plaintiff's individual claims were not subject to arbitration because he never personally consented, and [3] the clause's prohibition on representative actions and limitation to individual relief violated the effective vindication doctrine. The court remanded the case for further proceedings on severability." [Parrott v. International Bancshares Corp., No. 25-50367 (5th Cir. Feb. 10, 2026)] MORE >>
"The fiduciary defendants here made what were essentially the same arguments that have been made -- successfully -- by fiduciaries in other cases at the same point in litigation. Of course ... the plan document language matters -- and here the judge found just enough ambiguity to want to reserve judgement on intent for trial." [Russell v. Illinois Tool Works, No. 22-2492 (N.D. Ill. Feb. 9, 2026)] MORE >>
"The complaint, originally filed in March 2020, alleges the defendants failed to negotiate comparable contractual terms for the 401(k) plan's guaranteed investment fund and the company's defined benefit plan. Consequently, the 401(k) plan's GIF paid a significantly lower interest rate than the identical investment in the pension plan." [Sweeney v. Nationwide Mutual Ins. Co., No. 20-1569 (S.D. Ohio Feb. 9, 2026)] MORE >>
"These filings signal a coordinated litigation strategy that could fundamentally reclassify certain 'voluntary' benefits as ERISA‑covered plans, significantly expanding fiduciary exposure for employers. By targeting both employers and national benefits consultants, the lawsuits raise the stakes for plan design, vendor relationships, and long‑standing assumptions about ERISA's safe‑harbor boundaries." MORE >>
"CITs can add value to a retirement plan investment lineup, but plan sponsors should exercise caution. Their unique regulatory and structural characteristics demand thorough due diligence and detailed diligence documentation. Plan fiduciaries must look beyond a CIT's fund name to understand all facets of a CIT and evaluate its appropriateness for their plan(s) and participants." MORE >>
"Over the last decade, a line of US Supreme Court decisions ... have pushed fiduciary risk away from a focus on investment results and squarely onto the quality of the process and the paper trail that supports it. Together with regulatory guidance, these cases send a simple message: Under ERISA, prudence is a living, documented process, not a scoreboard of quarterly returns." MORE >>
"This emphasis on process means sponsors may be better positioned to demonstrate prudence when they keep clear records describing how decisions were made, who participated, and what information was considered at the time. A well‑organized process can support a plan's ability to respond to regulatory inquiries, even when market conditions create challenges." MORE >>
"By shifting many administrative and fiduciary duties to a pooled plan provider (PPP), employers can spend less time managing plan mechanics and more time focusing on their business and employees. That said, a PEP does not eliminate employer responsibility entirely ... [It] creates a clearer, more efficient division of responsibilities that often offers employers greater peace of mind." MORE >>
"By expanding their allegations against ERISA plans, plaintiff firms unlocked the ability to sue individual plan sponsors, and sometimes individual plans, multiple times.... [O]ver a dozen companies ... faced multiple class ERISA lawsuits over the past two years, some by the same plaintiff firm. [This article provides an] analysis of ERISA litigation ... to highlight its unfairness to the plan sponsor community, and its impact on the fiduciary liability insurance market." MORE >>
"The EBSA's position falsely suggests that fiduciary prudence is an either-or proposition, while fiduciary prudence under ERISA actually requires consideration of both procedural and substantive prudence.This analysis argues that an exclusive focus on proceduralism is inconsistent with ERISA's legislative history, ignores the dual nature of fiduciary prudence, and creates a regulatory environment that favors the insurance industry over plan participants and at the expense of both plan participants and their beneficiaries." MORE >>
"This summary focuses on the responsibilities and role of ERISA fiduciaries in managing plan investments.... [1] Evaluate and update the investment structure ... [2] Draft and periodically review the Investment Policy Statement (IPS) ... [3] 404(c) and QDIA oversight ... [4] Review and monitor investment manager performance ... [5] Monitor and benchmark plan fees ... [6] Managed accounts evaluation and monitoring ... [7] Oversee required employee communications ... [8] Review overall plan utilization ... [9] Review defined contribution trends and overall plan effectiveness." MORE >>
"The question now before the Court is whether plaintiffs alleging imprudence based on underperformance must plead a 'meaningful benchmark' at the motion-to-dismiss stage and, if so, how closely the comparator must align with the challenged fund's objectives, risks, and strategy.... Briefing and oral argument will occur this spring and a decision is expected in or before June 2026." [Anderson v. Intel Corp. Inv. Policy Comm., No. 22-16268 (9th Cir. May 22, 2025; cert. pet. granted Jan 16, 2026, No. 25-498)] MORE >>
"[T]wo former DOL officials have now weighed in supporting the plaintiffs in an ERISA litigation suit.... [T]he brief hearkens back to the environment pre-ERISA, and the history with the Studebaker-Packard Corporation's bankruptcy, and subsequent loss of pensions by its workforce that (eventually) provided the impetus for [ERISA].... They write that the suit 'plausibly alleges a concrete and particularized injury: a non-speculative, materially increased risk of nonpayment that is fairly traceable to the challenged fiduciary decision and redressable through ERISA's remedial provisions, including equitable relief.' " [Konya v. Lockheed Martin Corp., No. 24-0750 (D. Md. Mar. 28, 2025; on appeal to 4th Cir. No. 25-2061)] MORE >>
"The increased attention from regulators, lawmakers, and major market participants such as JPMorgan suggests that the role and influence of these firms are under unprecedented scrutiny. While companies should continue to follow established guidelines and best practices, and utilize market trends to inform their proxy voting and governance strategies, it is equally important to remain adaptable." MORE >>
"The company's 401(k) plan covers about 63,000 participants and holds nearly $15 billion in assets, according to the complaint. Roughly one-third of these funds were in what plaintiffs termed 'underperforming' products ... The former employees argued that the company was involved in self-dealing and prohibited transactions under ERISA because it designed its own funds, picked the managers, decided how assets were allocated and then collected related fees." [Lowbruck v. Dell, No. 26-0209 (W.D. Tex. complaint filed Jan. 28, 2026)] MORE >>
"[T]here have been glimmers of hope signaling that the Supreme Court's decision in Cornell, despite its initial impact, may actually provide an unexpected playbook for fighting back against meritless litigation.... In recent weeks, two courts have applied two of Cornell's so-called screening tools to dismiss meritless claims, and a third court is considering whether to implement another." MORE >>
"Though the DOL argued in its filing that the plaintiffs continue to receive benefits following the PRT, the former DOL officials argued that insisting the plaintiffs lacked standing would disrupt the balance of ERISA and that the PRT substantially increased the risk of nonpayment of benefits, thereby giving the plaintiffs standing in the case." [Konya v. Lockheed Martin Corp., No. 24-0750 (D. Md. Mar. 28, 2025; on appeal to 4th Cir. No. 25-2061)] MORE >>
"[A] key question that courts will have to grapple with in each of these cases is whether the plans fall outside the ambit of ERISA in accordance with the [DOL's] 'voluntary plan' safe harbor ... Plaintiffs maintain that the employers lacked any process to review, select or monitor carriers and brokers or to confirm that broker commissions were reasonable. They further allege ERISA prohibited transactions, asserting that employers and brokers caused the payment of excessive commissions from plan assets." MORE >>
"The Department of Labor filed its fourth amicus brief supporting employers in 401(k) plan forfeiture disputes, offering its starkest warning yet that a pro-plaintiff ruling could jeopardize employee benefits." [Barragan v. Honeywell Int'l, Inc., No. 24-4529 (D.N.J. Aug. 18, 2025; on appeal to 3d Cir. No. 25-2509)] MORE >>
"[T]he department argues that the district court correctly held that the plan sponsor did not breach its fiduciary duties of prudence and loyalty because the plaintiff's argument only included a bare allegation that forfeitures were not allocated to pay plan expenses, even though the plan at issue provided for fiduciary discretion over that decision. Instead, the brief explains how a prudent and loyal fiduciary might have concluded that it was important to ensure that plan participants received the contributions expressly promised by the plan in a timely manner." [Barragan v. Honeywell Int'l, Inc., No. 24-4529 (D.N.J. Aug. 18, 2025; on appeal to 3d Cir. No. 25-2509)] MORE >>
