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 »
Christopher Wingard
On August 7, 2025, a federal district judge in Massachusetts approved a $7,150,000 class settlement for former New England Biolabs, Inc. employees who alleged that the company’s redemption of their ESOP shares was completed at an unfairly low price.
José Jara
A federal district court in Colorado denied the Envision defendants’ motion for partial summary judgment on multiple ERISA claims arising from an ESOP transaction. Plaintiffs, on behalf of themselves and the Envision Management Holding, Inc. ESOP, alleged that the company’s Board of Directors, the ESOP Committee, and Argent Trust Company, among other individual defendants, breached their fiduciary duties in connection with the ESOP transaction.
Christopher Wingard
On August 14, 2026, a federal court in Arizona denied Wilson Electric Services Corporation and related defendants’ motion to decertify a class in an ongoing lawsuit challenging the ESOP plan committee’s investment in low-yielding money market accounts.
José Jara
A federal court in Arizona allowed a lawsuit to proceed concerning an ESOP plan committee’s investment of millions of dollars in the plan's Other Investments Account (“OIA”) in low-yielding bank deposits and money market accounts.
Christopher Wingard
The US District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee dismissed a putative class action lawsuit against Zander Group Holdings, Inc. and the ESOP’s fiduciaries brought by a former employee and ESOP participant.
Wendy Gilligan
ESOP participants Cheryl Haynes and Marcellus Garner (the “Plaintiffs”) filed a proposed class action on April 22, 2026, in the US District Court for the Northern District of Alabama against Stephen C. James, the ESOP Trustee; their former employer, AlaTrade Foods Inc., and AlaTrade Foods Holdings Inc. (collectively, the “Company”); and selling shareholders Davis Lee and Beth Lee.
José Jara
A federal court in Illinois dismissed ERISA fiduciary breach and prohibited transaction claims brought by former executives against Meadowvale, Inc., its ESOP Committee, two company executives, and QHI, LLC, finding the complaint failed to plead that any defendant acted in a fiduciary capacity.
Christopher Wingard
The US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit affirmed a district court judgment in favor of GreatBanc Trust Company and former directors and executives of the Segerdahl Corporation, rejecting claims that the defendants breached ERISA fiduciary duties.
José Jara
A former employee and ESOP participant, Christopher Dawson-Roberts, sued Norman S. Wright, its ESOP governing Committee, and three individual Committee members, who also served on the company’s board of directors.
Christopher Wingard
Following a bench trial, a Massachusetts federal court issued a mixed ruling in the long-running Russelectric ESOP litigation, finding in favor of plaintiffs on certain fiduciary breach claims while rejecting others.
