ERISA Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims in Virginia

Under § 502(a) of ERISA, participants and beneficiaries of ERISA plans can bring legal actions against ERISA fiduciaries for a breach of fiduciary duty. ERISA fiduciaries also may be liable based on a breach of fiduciary duty for engaging in self-dealing or other prohibited transactions.

Fiduciaries are those named as fiduciaries in the ERISA-governed plans or who function as fiduciaries due to their ability to exercise discretionary control over plan operations.

Filing an ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claims in Virginia can result in monetary or equitable relief, depending on the type of claim involved.

Elements of Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims Under ERISA

In breach of fiduciary claims pursuant to ERISA, individuals must establish the following three elements:

  • The defendants are plan fiduciaries.
  • The defendants breached their fiduciary duties.
  • The participants or the ERISA-governed plan sustained a cognizable loss as a result of the defendants’ breach of fiduciary duties.

Unlike a claim for denial of benefits under an ERISA plan, plaintiffs in an ERISA breach of fiduciary duty action are not required to first exhaust their administrative remedies prior to filing suit.

Common Examples of ERISA Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims

There are a variety of breach of fiduciary duty claims that individuals can bring pursuant to ERISA. Some of the most common types of breach of fiduciary duty claims under ERISA include the following:

  • Participants in an employer’s 401(k) plan sue the plan’s fiduciaries for breach of fiduciary duty for failing to appropriately manage the plan assets.
  • A group of employees plan to retire, and the vice-president of the company fails to tell them of approved enhancements to the existing early retirement plan that soon would go into effect. The employees file suit for breach of fiduciary duty, arguing that the employer misled them into retiring under the existing program.
  • Participants in a pension plan sue the trustee for breach of fiduciary duty due to self-dealing, after he loans a large portion of the pension plan assets in his own business, which ultimately goes bankruptcy and never repays the loan.
  • Participants in a pension plan file a claim for breach of fiduciary duty based on the fiduciaries’ failure to adequately diversify plan holdings or properly fund the plan.
  • Employees sue for breach of fiduciary duty for failure to adequately monitor fiduciaries appointed by the employer to manage the plan assets.

Remedies for ERISA Breach of Fiduciary Duty Claims

Under § 502(a)(2) of ERISA, participants and beneficiaries of an ERISA-governed plan may recover monetary losses caused by a breach of fiduciary duty. In the case of defined contribution plans, participants may recover losses to their individuals accounts as a result of breach of fiduciary duty. Attorney fee awards also are available in breach of fiduciary duty claims under ERISA.

However, claims pursuant to § 502(a)(3) of ERISA are limited to appropriate forms of equitable relief. Therefore, recovery under this section can only include equitable restitution, injunctions, and other forms of equitable relief, rather than monetary damages.

Contact a Virginia ERISA Breach of Fiduciary Duty Attorney Today

ERISA breach of fiduciary duty claims in Virginia are complex and fact-specific. Although many plans fall under ERISA governance, all plans have unique features that vary widely from one case to the next.

As a result, you may want to seek the services of an ERISA breach of fiduciary duty lawyer in Virginia for advice.