The US Supreme Court recently agreed to review the Eighth Circuit’s decision in Thole v. US Bank, in which the Eighth Circuit held that participants in an overfunded defined benefit pension plan lack standing to sue for fiduciary breaches under ERISA. The Supreme Court’s decision in this case—the third ERISA case accepted by the court this term—could have significant implications for plan sponsors and plan fiduciaries. Many believe that if the Supreme Court rules that the plaintiffs have standing to bring suit, it could encourage a proliferation of litigation against plans where there is no actual impact on participants’ benefits.
Big ERISA Decisions on the Horizon—SCOTUS to Review Third ERISA Case this Term
Brigid McCarthyBrigid McCarthy focuses her practice on commercial litigation matters. During law school, Brigid competed on the Julius H. Miner Moot Court and participated in the Bluhm Legal Clinic. She served as a judicial extern for the Hon. William J. Bauer of the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit and a judicial intern for the Hon. Michael T. Mason of the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois. She also interned at the Office of General Counsel to the Illinois Governor. Read Brigid McCarthy's full bio.
Brian TiemannBrian J. Tiemann counsels public and private companies on a broad range of employee benefit matters, including matters related to pension plans, 401(k) plans and executive and incentive compensation. He advises plan fiduciaries with respect to their fiduciary duties, investment policies and alternative investments. He also advises multinational clients on global employee benefits matters, particularly with respect to global incentive compensation plans. Brian has extensive experience negotiating investment management agreements and service provider agreements. Read Brian Tiemann's full bio.
J. Christian NemethJ. Christian (Chris) Nemeth provides legal counsel on complex commercial litigation and government investigations, including ERISA matters, financial and banking cases, business torts and breach of contract actions. Chris is the Co-Chair of the Firm’s ERISA Litigation group and works closely with the Firm’s Employee Benefits department on all types of Litigation matters, Department of Labor investigations and similar issues. Read Chris Nemeth's full bio.
Richard J. PearlRick Pearl focuses his practice on litigation involving the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). He represents companies, their benefits committees, plan administrators, fiduciaries, and service providers in complex, class-action litigation and Department of Labor lawsuits, audits, and investigations. His particular expertise is with actions for breach of fiduciary duty and prohibited transactions. Read Rick Pearl's full bio.
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