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District Court Denies Oneida Indian Nation's Immunity Defense to ERISA Lawsuit

"Judge Glenn Suddaby of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York in Syracuse declined a dismissal motion for governmental immunity by the Nation's hospitality and gaming company ... Suddaby's ruling on [ERISA] lawsuit, brought in December 2024 by three former police officers, said he wouldn't dismiss the case against the company's benefits plan and investment committee, because the retirement plan also covers non-government casino employees who represent most of the plan participants." [Jones v. Turning Stone Enterprises LLC, No. 24-1596 (N.D.N.Y. Dec. 9, 2025)]

District Court Finds Pension Plan's $725,000 Refund Request for Overpayment Reasonable

"The plan's third-party administrator initially determined that the participant was owed a lump-sum payment of $782,733 upon reaching retirement age and paid out that benefit. However, the plan later informed him of the mistake, notified him of his recalculated benefit of $57,232 and demanded refund of the $725,501 overpayment. [The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York] granted summary judgment to the plan, finding that it didn't abuse its discretion in interpreting the plan terms to discredit 20 years of service that the participant spent employed by a separate company that was merged with the plan sponsor less than two years before the participant left his employment with the sponsor." [Baackes v. Kaiser Found. Health Plan, Inc., No. 1:12-cv-00583-FJS-RFT (N.D.N.Y. Jan. 3, 2014)]

Federal District Court Opinion: ESOP Trustee Mishandled Stock Purchase in Henry v. Champlain Enterprises Inc. (PDF)

Employee Stock Ownership Plan participants have been awarded damages in the amount of $7.75 million.

'Probate Exception' Barred Federal Jurisdiction in Health Plan's Reimbursement Claim Against Estate

"The U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York has ruled that the so-called 'probate exception' to federal jurisdiction precludes federal courts from adjudicating cases implicating federal question jurisdiction, including cases arising under ERISA. In so doing, the N.D.N.Y. joins ranks with a small but growing number of federal district and circuit courts that recognize the 'probate exception' as an absolute bar to federal jurisdiction over any in rem action in the custody of a state probate court." [In re Boisseau, No. 16-549 (N.D.N.Y. Jan. 30, 2017)]