During the panel hearing before the Ninth Circuit, Judge Andrew Hurwitz, an Obama appointee, hammered the plaintiff's attorney on the claim that Chevron failed its fiduciary obligations.
When the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals recently affirmed a lower court decision to dismiss a 401(k) excessive fee lawsuit, the three Democrat-appointed jurists addressed a simple question: Do plaintiffs in retirement plans have to show plausible evidence that sponsors breached their fiduciary obligations, or do plaintiffs merely have to make an allegation to get a court to hear the claims?
In 2017, the District Court for the Northern District of California dismissed the claims in White v. Chevron Corp., which included allegations that a money market fund was imprudently used in lieu of a stable value fund, more expensive retail shares of mutual funds were offered when cheaper alternatives existed, and the plan charged excessive record-keeping fees.
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Nick Thornton
Nick Thornton is a financial writer covering retirement and health care issues for BenefitsPRO and ALM Media. He greatly enjoys learning from the vast minds in the legal, academic, advisory and money management communities when covering the retirement space. He's also written on international marketing trends, financial institution risk management, defense and energy issues, the restaurant industry in New York City, surfing, cigars, rum, travel, and fishing. When not writing, he's pushing into some land or water.
