Employee Ownership Legal Digest
Lauren Wood

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Lauren Wood, Associate Attorney at Employee Benefits Law Group PC Guidance, is involved in several areas of employee benefits with a primary focus on issues related to employee stock ownership plans, mergers and acquisitions, ERISA and Internal Revenue Code compliance, and general corporate tax issues. With a background in tax law, she knows how to provide guidance on complex issues in terms that are practical and easy to understand.

Lauren Wood

Partial Settlement with Defendant Board Member in Russelectric ESOP Valuation Lawsuit

Bowers, et al. v. Russell, et al., No. 1:22-cv-10457-PBS (D. Mass. Sep. 5, 2025)

For details on the initial procedural ruling that allowed the claims to proceed, see the original entry at: Case Over Valuation of Terminated ESOP Shares Can Continue.

A district court in Massachusetts approved a partial $3 million settlement with one of the company’s board of directors in a class action lawsuit against the Russelectric ESOP.

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Lauren Wood

Court Allows Executive Trust Assets in Lloyd v. Argent Trust ESOP Lawsuit

Lloyd v. Argent Trust, No. 1:22-cv-04129-DLC (S.D. NY, July 10, 2025)

On July 10, 2025, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York allowed plaintiffs to amend their original complaint to add the trustees and beneficiaries of two trusts as defendants. These trusts received proceeds from a 2016 sale to the WBBQ Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), which is the subject of the plaintiffs’ suit. The newly added trusts are now possible sources of recovery for the plaintiffs.

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