Debunking ERISA’s Big Lie that BlackRock LifePath Investment Performance is “Deplorable”
Morningstar has issued a public report debunking the claims in the eleven lawsuits alleging that plan fiduciaries committed fiduciary malpractice by failing to switch out of BlackRock LifePath target-date funds (TDFs) in favor of higher performing investments. New 401(k) Lawsuits Go Too Far | Morningstar The Morningstar report conclusively refutes any claim that BlackRock LifePath […]
Trying to Make Sense of ERISA Pleading Law After the Seventh Circuit’s Oshkosh Decision
The quest for a predictable and fair pleading standard to stop ERISA class action litigation abuse continues. The Supreme Court in Hughes v. Northwestern gave us a limited opinion that did not solve the problem, and even that opinion initially has caused more confusion in the district courts. So the battle continues in the appellate […]
When Should Sanctions Be Imposed in ERISA Class Actions?
By Daniel Aronowitz A federal district court has imposed $1.5 million in sanctions against the Schlichter Bogard & Denton LLP law firm and its co-counsel for “recklessly” prosecuting an excessive fee case under section 36(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 without credible factual or legal support against Great-West Capital Management. Sanctions are a […]
BlackRock Cases: Imprudence Claims and Federal Pleading Standards
By Daniel Aronowitz The Miller Shah law firm has filed nine fiduciary malpractice lawsuits to date against some of the lowest-fee, best-managed defined contribution plans in America. After years of higher-fee plans with actively managed investment options facing imprudence challenges, this next chapter in the long war against large-plan fiduciaries represents a cynical and meritless […]
Citigroup & Stanley Black Fiduciary Malpractice: Choosing Morningstar’s BlackRock Target-Date Funds
By Daniel Aronowitz A group of plaintiff law firms continues to second-guess the investment decisions of the fiduciaries of America’s large retirement plans by alleging fiduciary malpractice based on plan fees and investment performance. Most of these cases attempt to compare actively managed investments to lower-cost passively managed investments. But in two cases filed on […]
TriHealth and CommonSpirit: Justifying Retail-Fee Share Classes in Large Plans
By Daniel Aronowitz Euclid Fiduciary The sequel is often not as good as the original, and so it is with the Sixth Circuit’s recent excessive fee rulings. The June 21, 2022 decision by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in Smith v. CommonSpirit Health was a masterpiece. The Sixth Circuit ruled that […]
