Stay informed on the latest legal developments impacting employee ownership with timely and concise summaries of key cases and rulings.
Corey Rosen
In Vigeant v. Meek, No. 0:18-cv-00577-JNETNL (D-Minn., Nov. 17, 2018), a judge dismissed a lawsuit against plaintiffs who alleged that Lifetouch stock dropped by more than $840 million between 2015 and 2018, resulting in an average loss of $22,000 per participant.
Corey Rosen
The IRS has announced new 2019 limits for retirement plans
Corey Rosen
In Barker v. Selway Corp., No. 9:18-cv- 00179 (D. Mont., petitioners’ motion for preliminary approval of settlement, Nov. 16, 2018) the parties agreed to an arbitrated $5.5 million settlement.
Corey Rosen
In Pfeifer v. Wawa, Inc., No. 2:16-cv-00497-PD (E.D. Pa., motion for settlement approval filed 12/29/17), the trustees of WaWa’s ESOP agreed to pay about 2,300 current and former employees $25 million ($5 million of which will go to attorney’s fees).
Corey Rosen
In Yates v. Nichols, No. 3:17-cv-01389-JGC 2017 (N.D. Ohio, order granting defendant’s motion to dismiss December 18, 2017), a court ruled that fiduciaries of Marathon’s 401(k) plan did not breach their fiduciary duties by allowing employees to invest in company stock in the company’s 401(k) plan.
Corey Rosen
In Vespremi v. Tesla Motors, a state court ruled that a plaintiff who had received an offer for stock options in Tesla could not receive any of the stock options he claimed he deserved.
Corey Rosen
Two circuit courts ruled for the defendants in stock-drop lawsuits involving company stock in 401(k) plans.
Corey Rosen
A court denied Wilmington Trust’s request to move jurisdiction in an ESOP lawsuit concerning valuation at Graphite Sales to Delaware.
Corey Rosen
In Paza Staffing Servs. v. Commissioner, No. 18-1407 (3rd Cir. Nov. 2, 2018, unpublished), a circuit court ruled the IRS correctly disqualified an ESOP set up for a surgeon as the sole participant. The surgeon had five other employees.
Corey Rosen
In Acosta v. Potts, No. 2:16-cv-00612-JLG-CMV (S.D. Ohio, Oct. 17, 2018), the DOL and Thomas Potts agreed to a settlement of $465,000, pending additional amounts that may be recovered pending litigation with the fiduciary insurer.
