Friday, June 20, 2008
- Brad Neese
John Burkhardt, a leading employee benefits litigator in Oklahoma and
attorney with PremierSource's strategic alliance partner McAfee &
Taft, was interviewed by The Oklahoman on a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, LaRue v. DeWolff, Broberg & Associates Inc., that
will now make it easier for individual participants in defined
contribution plans, such as 401(k), to recover for losses to their
individual accounts.
"It is quite significant," Burkhardt said. "LaRue
makes it clear that participants can bring legal proceedings under
ERISA to remedy certain harm incurred in their individual retirement
accounts, without having to rely upon the plan or other plan
fiduciaries to do so for them, and regardless of whether such harm also
adversely affected the entire plan."
Burkhardt also said this decision could impact employers who sponsor such employee retirement plans.
"Since
it is common for employers who sponsor such plans to be found to have
fiduciary duties, if they have failed to fulfill their duties, and a
participant's individual account has been adversely affected as a
result, employers may now face a greater risk of legal liability."
You can read the entire article here.