Plans, Perks & Pay | Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Blog

In April 2018, New York University was the first university to take to trial a case claiming it violated its ERISA fiduciary duties. And on July 31, 2018, it became the first university to win. Sacerdote v. New York Univ., No. 16-CV-6284 (KBF), 2018 WL 3629598 (S.D.N.Y. July 31, 2018).

More than a dozen lawsuits have been filed against prestigious colleges and universities claiming that they violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) in the operation of their Code Section 403(b) plans. Within the last year, University of Pennsylvania and Northwestern each won dismissal of their cases, and the University of Chicago settled its claims for $6.5 million. But NYU’s victory was the first to come after a trial, and the court’s finding of facts and conclusions of law provide lessons for ERISA fiduciaries — and not just those embroiled in their own fee cases.

Northwestern University recently defeated a lawsuit alleging that it violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) while managing its retirement plans. The plaintiffs brought ERISA breach of fiduciary duty and prohibited transaction claims, alleging the university’s retirement plans featured imprudent investments and paid excessive fees. On May 25, 2018, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois dismissed the lawsuit in its entirety and denied the plaintiffs’ motion to amend to add additional counts, finding them futile.