In the past few months, Wisconsin, among other states, has seen a rise in class litigations involving breach of fiduciary duty claims under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, or ERISA. These types of claims target sponsoring employees who manage plan investments and plan fees for 401(k) plans. Under ERISA law, individuals have a fiduciary duty when it comes to handling a qualifying benefit plan and make choices with the plan participants’ best interests in mind.
Within these claims, the plaintiff habitually alleges that the plan fiduciaries and administrators either selected exceptionally expensive investment choices and/or incurred great administrative fees, resulting in a severe loss for plan participants.
These choices are in comparison to other less expensive options accessible on the open market. The relief sought encompasses money that plan participants allegedly lost due to the poor actions of the fiduciaries as well as attorney fees.
Attributable to the sharp increase of ERISA lawsuits, fiduciaries and employers must make sure they are meticulously monitoring investment options and consistently compare administrative fees on the open marketplace. As plan fiduciaries continue to be placed under a microscope when it comes to making plan decisions, it is vital to consistently meet fiduciary obligations.
We at Colonial Surety Company never want fiduciaries to be vulnerable to plan participant lawsuits. With fiduciary liability insurance, fiduciaries can protect themselves from covered plan participant lawsuits. What’s more, you can successfully manage a data-breach and safeguard the plan with cyber liability insurance—all found in our ERISA bond combos and packages. Obtain your ERISA fidelity bond package today.