This is an interesting paper, that comes to us via Workplace Prof, and which provokes further thought on the issue of the litigation boom involving 401(k) plans. The paper finds that pension plans outperform mutual funds, and attributes that differential to costs buried within mutual funds, as well as to the size of
Blogging on the Pension Protection Act
I have been meaning to mention this for some time now, but other things always come up. So before the week takes me on to other issues that I want to post about, I thought I would take a moment and recommend to you Suzanne Wynn’s Pension Protection Act blog, which I have been reading
Electronic Discovery and the Federal Rules
If I am a little obsessed with the topic of electronic discovery, I apologize, although I can explain it. Computer storage and manipulation of information is now the standard operating procedure for insurance companies, financial companies, third party administrators, and others involved with ERISA plans and insurance policies. As a result, the unique discovery issues
Behavioral Economics and a Disincentive to Retire
We have talked a fair amount on this blog about “choice architecture” and how the new structure of the retirement system, with its move from pensions to 401(k) plans, may be affecting behavior in unintended ways, such as by encouraging litigation. At his blog, the RiskProf has an excellent post on another negative
Risk Transfer, Major League Baseball and Insurance
It’s a truism that insurance greases the skids for the entire economy; as a risk sharing mechanism, it allows businesses and individuals to move forward knowing they won’t bear the entire cost if something goes wrong. David Rossmiller’s ongoing coverage at his blog of the response of coastal states to a decrease in available homeowners
Insurance Coverage Litigation and the Elastic Concept of Ambiguity
When I was taking constitutional law in law school, I had a professor who liked to say that what standard of review the Supreme Court applied to certain types of issues depended on whether or not the justices wanted to uphold or instead overturn the statute before them; a more cursory level of review guaranteed
ERISA Preemption and Universal Health Care in Massachusetts
Well, the world of ERISA preemption, without Maryland’s Wal-Mart law to focus on anymore, turns its lonely eyes to Massachusetts’ universal health insurance statute, with the Boston Business Journal posting a front page article this week that says, in essence, it might be preempted but then again, maybe not.
Whether or not this statute is
401(k) Plans and Breach of Fiduciary Duty Lawsuits
I have written before, and frequently (such as here and here), about the coming boom in litigation against plan sponsors and fiduciaries over alleged excessive fees and other alleged malfeasance in the administration of 401(k) plans. One point I have tried to drive home in my posts, including here and here, is that
Electronic Discovery and Cell Phones
Well, here’s a curious thought. Do the electronic discovery amendments to the federal rules reach cell phone text messages? A recent article from BNA’s Digital Discovery and E-Evidence reporter put that thought in my head, and I am sure that the authors of that article have something to say on that point. As for me,
Behavioral Economics, the Pension Protection Act and 401(k) Litigation
I have written before about my thesis that 401(k) litigation, and the tendency of individuals to pursue such suits, may be driven in part by the psychology of retirement benefits and the uncertainty for employees as to whether they will be able to fund their retirement that these types of retirement savings vehicles create, particularly