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Benefits

  • May 14, 2025

    Chicken Price-Fixing Atty Fees Challenged Again At 7th Circ.

    A class objector in Chicago's massive consolidated suit over broiler chicken price-fixing is again urging the Seventh Circuit to vacate an attorney fee award for class counsel in a $181 million deal for chicken buyers, saying the district court erred in calculating the $51.66 million awarded on remand.

  • May 14, 2025

    Aetna, Cigna Can't Nix Suit Over Late Emergency Benefit Bills

    A Connecticut federal judge ruled Wednesday that Aetna and Cigna can't fully escape a suit from six air ambulance companies claiming the insurers owe $20 million in unpaid or late bills to cover emergency services, ruling they have the legal authority to seek the missing cash.

  • May 14, 2025

    Holding Co. Beats Suit Over 401(k) Investment Roster

    A Berkshire Hathaway-owned industrial holding company doesn't have to face a proposed class action claiming it filled its 401(k) plan with underperforming proprietary target date funds, with an Illinois federal judge faulting plan participants' efforts to compare those funds with other potential investments.

  • May 14, 2025

    Judge Orders Boeing To Share Disclosures, Allow Depositions

    A Virginia federal judge has said Boeing must share disclosures about its "false-stamping" of aircraft testing with three state pension systems that accuse the company and its executives of putting profits over safety, and that some board members must sit for depositions.

  • May 14, 2025

    Starbucks, Ex-VP Settle $830K Bonus Repayment Suit

    Starbucks has struck a deal with a former senior vice president the company previously accused of failing to repay part of his $1 million signing bonus after he quit, according to filings in New Jersey federal court Tuesday.

  • May 13, 2025

    Wells Fargo Asks 9th Circ. To Undo 'Sham' Hiring Class Cert.

    Wells Fargo has asked the Ninth Circuit to intervene and undo the class certification granted to investors who have claimed that the bank's alleged practice of conducting "sham" interviews to meet diversity quotas harmed the bank's stock price when the truth came to light.

  • May 13, 2025

    Nike Seeks Dismissal Of Investors' Sales Strategy Fraud Suit

    Sportswear company Nike and several of its top executives have urged an Oregon federal judge to toss a proposed class action alleging the company's stock value declined as it continued to mislead investors on the success of a change in sales strategy, saying the suit improperly uses hindsight to claim fraud.

  • May 13, 2025

    Industrial Retailer Misused Forfeited 401(k) Funds, Suit Says

    Industrial supply company W.W. Grainger Inc. unlawfully used forfeited 401(k) funds to reduce its contributions to the retirement plan rather than cover expenses, costing plan participants millions of dollars in potential retirement benefits, according to a proposed class action in Illinois federal court.

  • May 13, 2025

    UnitedHealth Says Lack Of Contract Sinks Coverage Suit

    UnitedHealth entities urged a Michigan federal judge Monday to toss a lawsuit from a medical supply company that alleges the insurer issued a blanket block on its claims, saying the supplier has no written contract to support its breach of contract allegations.

  • May 13, 2025

    SEC's Uyeda Encourages Opening 401(k)s To Private Assets

    U.S. Securities and Exchange Commissioner Mark Uyeda said Tuesday that regulators should explore how retirement accounts could expand to include private equity investments, arguing that such a shift would put 401(k) plans on par with pension funds.

  • May 13, 2025

    Fla. Medical Cos. Sue Akerman For Malpractice, Fight Fees Bid

    After Akerman LLP filed suit against Rennova Health Inc. and medical laboratories for unpaid fees last month, the healthcare services company swung back with a motion to dismiss that case, while the labs filed their own malpractice lawsuits.

  • May 13, 2025

    11th Circ. Eyes Restarting Seafood Workers' ESOP Suit

    The Eleventh Circuit seemed Tuesday to lean toward reviving a lawsuit from former workers of a seafood company who allege that their employee stock ownership plan was overcharged in a $92 million deal, as judges questioned a lower court's decision to toss the case with prejudice.

  • May 13, 2025

    1st Circ. Vacates $10M Severance Win Over Drafting Error

    The First Circuit threw out a judgment that valued a departing technology executive's severance payout at $10.2 million due to a mistake in the contract, ruling that the company's intended offer of $680,000 in total value could also be reasonably construed from the text of the deal.  

  • May 13, 2025

    Former X Exec Can Drop His Bonus Suit, Avoiding Sanctions

    A former X Corp. executive can drop his suit accusing the social media company of failing to pay out bonuses after Elon Musk took over, a California federal judge ruled, rejecting the company's bid to sanction him for knowing his case was baseless from the start.

  • May 13, 2025

    NFL Benefits Plan Throws Flag On Atty Fee Award To Player

    Former NFL player Michael Cloud should never have been awarded attorney fees by a Texas federal judge after a "complete loss" on appeal of his suit over disability benefits, the National Football League's retirement plan has told the Fifth Circuit.

  • May 13, 2025

    Howard Agrees To End Retiree's Mortality Table Suit

    Howard University has agreed to settle a proposed class action claiming its use of decades-old mortality data to calculate retirement benefits unlawfully reduced retirees' payouts, according to a filing in D.C. federal court.

  • May 13, 2025

    Employee Benefits Partner Joins Seyfarth From McDermott

    Seyfarth Shaw LLP has added an employee benefits partner in Chicago who spent the past 19 years at McDermott Will & Emery LLP.

  • May 12, 2025

    Ex-Twitter Workers Say Musk Reneged On Severance Promise

    Four former Twitter employees in Illinois filed a lawsuit in federal court on Monday, the latest to launch federal contract claims against Twitter, Elon Musk and his newly named X platform over Musk's allegedly illegal decision to pay laid-off workers less severance than was promised for the first year post-acquisition.

  • May 12, 2025

    UAW Drops Claim Over Frozen Unemployment Benefits

    The United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Workers of America agreed to drop its claim that the Michigan Unemployment Insurance Agency violated an agreement to better investigate potentially fraudulent claims as long as the agency takes steps to comply with the deal.

  • May 12, 2025

    Boeing Execs Say Cert. Appeal Warrants Stay Of 737 Max Suit

    Boeing executives have argued state pension fund litigation accusing them of putting profits over safety should be paused while the Fourth Circuit reviews the certification of a class of investors who are accusing the company and its leaders of making false statements about the 737 Max.

  • May 12, 2025

    Alcoa Retirees, Unions Tell Judge Not To Halt Benefits Order

    A group of retirees and unions asked an Indiana federal judge not to pause his order requiring Alcoa USA Corp. to reinstate lifetime healthcare benefits, arguing the company isn't likely to win at the Seventh Circuit and delaying the district court's decision harms elderly class members.

  • May 12, 2025

    Will Justices Finally Rein In Universal Injunctions?

    The U.S. Supreme Court is expected to address for the first time Thursday the propriety of universal injunctions, a tool federal judges have increasingly used to broadly halt presidential orders and policy initiatives, and whose validity has haunted the high court's merits and emergency dockets for more than a decade.

  • May 12, 2025

    United Health Inks $9.3M Deal In Cancer Treatment Denial Suit

    United Healthcare has agreed to pay up to $9.3 million to end a proposed class action alleging it refused to cover a proton beam cancer radiation treatment by incorrectly deeming the therapy experimental, according to a Massachusetts federal court filing.

  • May 12, 2025

    Agencies Win Stay Of Mental Health Parity Rule Suit

    A D.C. federal court on Monday agreed to stay a suit from a benefits-focused employer trade group seeking to block a recently finalized mental health parity rule, after the DOL and other federal agencies told the court they plan to rescind or modify the rule.

  • May 12, 2025

    Red Cross Strikes Deal In Suit Over 401(k) Funds, Fees

    The American National Red Cross has agreed to pay $950,000 to resolve a suit claiming it cost workers millions in savings by keeping underperforming funds in its $1.2 billion retirement plan and allowing high fees, according to a D.C. federal court filing.

Expert Analysis

  • A Halftime Analysis Of DOJ's Compensation Pilot Program

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    The U.S. Department of Justice appears to consider the first half of its three-year pilot program on compensation incentives and clawbacks to be proceeding successfully, so companies should expect prosecutors to emphasize the program and other compliance-related considerations early in investigations, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Series

    Documentary Filmmaking Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Becoming a documentary filmmaker has allowed me to merge my legal expertise with my passion for storytelling, and has helped me to hone negotiation, critical thinking and problem-solving skills that are important to both endeavors, says Robert Darwell at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Litigation Funding Disclosure Debate: Strategy Considerations

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    In the ongoing debate over whether courts should require disclosure of litigation funding, funders and plaintiffs tend to argue against such mandates, but voluntarily disclosing limited details about a funding arrangement can actually confer certain benefits to plaintiffs in some scenarios, say Andrew Stulce and Marc Cavan at Longford Capital.

  • Discretionary Compensation Lessons From 7th Circ. Ruling

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    The Seventh Circuit’s recent ruling in Das v. Tata established that contract disclaimers don't automatically bar claims under the Illinois Wage Payment and Collection Act, underscoring the limits of compensation systems that purport to grant employers unilateral discretion, say attorneys at Schoenberg Finkel.

  • Justices Likely To Stay In ERISA's Bounds On Pleadings

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    The arguments in Cunningham v. Cornell showed the U.S. Supreme Court's willingness to resolve a circuit split regarding Employee Retirement Income Security Act pleading standards by staying within ERISA's confines, while instructing courts regarding what must be pled to survive a motion to dismiss, says Ryan Curtis at Fennemore Craig.

  • Series

    Adventure Photography Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Photographing nature everywhere from Siberia to Cuba and Iceland to Rwanda provides me with a constant reminder to refresh, refocus and rethink the legal issues that my clients face, says Richard Birmingham at Davis Wright.

  • 5 Ways To Create Effective Mock Assignments For Associates

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    In order to effectively develop associates’ critical thinking skills, firms should design mock assignments that contain a few key ingredients, from messy fact patterns to actionable feedback, says Abdi Shayesteh at AltaClaro.

  • 8 Lessons Yellow Corp. Layoffs Can Teach Distressed Cos.

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    A Delaware bankruptcy court’s recent decision, examining trucking company Yellow Corp.’s abrupt termination of roughly 25,500 employees, offers financially distressed businesses a road map for navigating layoffs under the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act, say attorneys at King & Spalding.

  • Mentorship Resolutions For The New Year

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    Attorneys tend to focus on personal achievements or career milestones when they set yearly goals, but one important area often gets overlooked in this process — mentoring relationships, which are some of the most effective tools for professional growth, say Kelly Galligan at Rutan & Tucker and Andra Greene at Phillips ADR.

  • Series

    Coaching Little League Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    While coaching poorly played Little League Baseball early in the morning doesn't sound like a good time, I love it — and the experience has taught me valuable lessons about imperfection, compassion and acceptance that have helped me grow as a person and as a lawyer, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

  • 5 Litigation Funding Trends To Note In 2025

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    Lawyers and their clients must be prepared to navigate an evolving litigation funding market in 2025, made more complicated by a new administration and the increasing overall cost of litigation, says Jeffery Lula at GLS Capital.

  • Rethinking Litigation Risk And What It Really Means To Win

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    Attorneys have a tendency to overestimate litigation risk before summary judgment and underestimate risk after it, but an eight-stage litigation framework can clarify risk at different points and help litigators reassess what true success looks like in any particular case, says Joshua Libling at Arcadia Finance.

  • Issues To Watch In 2025's ERISA Litigation Landscape

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    Whether 2024’s uptick in new Employee Retirement Income Security Act cases will continue this year will likely depend on federal courts’ resolution of several issues, including those related to excessive fees, defined contribution plan forfeitures, and pleading standards for ERISA-prohibited transaction claims, say attorneys at Groom Law.

  • Justices Could Stitch Up ERISA Circuit Split With Cornell Case

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    In Cunningham v. Cornell, scheduled for oral arguments next week, the U.S. Supreme Court has the opportunity to provide uniform pleading standards for Section 1106(a) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, the lack of which has vexed circuit courts and benefits counsel for years, says Scott Tippett at Offit Kurman.

  • Series

    Playing Rugby Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My experience playing rugby, including a near-fatal accident, has influenced my legal practice on a professional, organizational and personal level by showing me the importance of maintaining empathy, fostering team empowerment and embracing the art of preparation, says James Gillenwater at Greenberg Traurig.

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