Stay informed on the latest legal developments impacting employee ownership with timely and concise summaries of key cases and rulings. Learn more about this digest »
Wendy Gilligan
On November 4, 2025, the California Office of Tax Appeals (“OTA”) issued a nonprecedential decision in a dispute between appellants A. Varela and J. Varela and respondent Franchise Tax Board (“FTB”), regarding the tax treatment of Mud Management, Inc. (“Mud”).
Christopher Wingard
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California has ordered the plaintiffs in Dalton et al. v. Freeman et al. to submit specific factual allegations in a Rule 7 reply. This procedural ruling is the latest development in multi-year litigation arising from a 2020 ESOP redemption transaction.
Christopher Wingard
The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed a district court ruling that invalidated an arbitration provision in an employee stock ownership plan sponsored by A360, Inc. (the “ESOP”), holding that the clause unlawfully waived participants’ statutory rights under ERISA. This ruling affirms the earlier procedural decision that allowed the claims to proceed. For the full history of the initial district court case and the underlying arbitration dispute, see the original NCEO Legal Digest entry: Court Rules Arbitration Clause Does Not Apply in A360 ESOP Termination Lawsuit.
Christopher Wingard
On December 19, 2025, the parties to a multi-year dispute regarding 80/20 Inc.’s Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) filed a joint notice of settlement in federal court. For a history of the underlying “rightful buyer” claim, see the original NCEO Legal Digest Post: Claim that ESOP is rightful buyer of company dismissed, but other claims allowed to continue.
Christopher Wingard
A proposed $2,375,000 settlement is pending approval in the class action lawsuit brought by former ESOP participants against Argent Trust Company, North Highland ESOP Holdings, Inc., North Highland Company, Inc. and other defendants.
Wendy Gilligan
On September 29, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of North Carolina approved the defendants’ motion for summary judgment and dismissed the plaintiff’s fiduciary breach claims in a case in which the former President of the company and trustee of the company’s ESOP claimed the ESOP’s other fiduciaries breached their duties by allowing the misuse of corporate assets, undervaluing the company’s stock and negatively impacting his ESOP account by not making contributions, in addition to dividend payments, to fund the distribution of terminated participants’ ESOP benefits.
Christopher Wingard
The U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California has partially denied Alerus Financial N.A.’s motion to dismiss plaintiffs’ First Amended Complaint alleging fiduciary breaches in connection with a series of ESOP transactions.
Alan H. Kandel
On October 1, 2025, a motion to dismiss was granted in Trull v. Board of Trustees of the McCreary Modern, Inc. Employee Stock Ownership Plan.
Lauren Wood
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.
Christopher Wingard
United Bank Corporation has reached a tentative $2 million settlement to resolve a class action lawsuit brought by former employees claiming ERISA violations related to the forced liquidation of ESOP shares into cash at an allegedly improper price.
