Roundup

ERISA Recap: 6 Noteworthy Decisions From March

By Kellie Mejdrich

JPMorgan Chase & Co. narrowed but couldn't escape a suit from workers who said their health plan paid too much for prescription drugs, Genworth Financial Inc. unwound a class at the Fourth Circuit, and the Sixth Circuit breathed new life into proposed class actions against FedEx and Kellogg. Here, Law360 looks at these and three other notable decisions from March in ERISA cases.

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ERISA Trumps Tennessee PBM Laws, 6th Circ. Says

By Patrick Hoff

The Sixth Circuit backed a trial court's conclusion that Tennessee laws regulating pharmacy benefit managers conflict with the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, ruling the state law's requirement that "any willing provider" be accepted to PBMs' networks impermissibly dictates how the plans are designed.

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Brief

Labor Dept. Policy Adviser Named Top Atty At PBGC

By Grace Elletson

The Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation has tapped a policy adviser who worked for the U.S. Department of Labor's employee benefits arm to serve as the PBGC's general counsel.

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NJ Car Dealer Accused Of Picking Pricey 401(k) Funds

By Carla Baranauckas

Holman Automotive Group Inc. was slapped with a proposed class action in New Jersey federal court accusing the company and unidentified plan fiduciaries of breaching their duties under ERISA by saddling employees with unnecessarily expensive retirement plan investments that allegedly drained more than $1 million from workers' savings.

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Fla. Insurer, Ex-Parent To Pay $135M Over ACA Fraud Scheme

By Gina Kim

A Florida insurer and its former parent, which is a Delaware-based national partnership of insurance brokers, have agreed to pay $135 million collectively to resolve allegations of a scheme to enroll ineligible consumers into subsidized Affordable Care Act plans and of defrauding the federal government of more than $140 million. 

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Brief

HIV, AIDS Patients End Disability Bias Suit With CVS

By Grace Elletson

CVS Pharmacy Inc. and a group of HIV and AIDS patients have agreed to wrap up a suit claiming the company made it harder for them to get their medication in violation of disability discrimination law, according to a California federal court filing.

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Mercury Systems Investors Seek Final OK Of $32.5M Deal

By Emilie Ruscoe

Investors in aerospace and defense technology company Mercury Systems Inc. have asked a Boston federal judge to give the final nod to their $32.5 million deal to end claims the company mischaracterized certain integration processes amid a $1.4 billion acquisition spree, causing trading prices to slide as the company acknowledged financial fallout stemming from the integration woes.

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Prudential Can't Enforce 'Illusory' Policy, Beneficiaries Say

By Hope Patti

The beneficiaries of two pilots who died in a plane crash said a Prudential insurer can't escape their suit seeking accidental death and dismemberment benefits under an aviation company's life insurance plan, telling a Washington federal court that the policy departs from the industry standard because it is "illusory."

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Morgan Lewis Adds Pillsbury Atty To Employee Benefits Team

By Daniel Moritz-Rabson

Morgan Lewis & Bockius LLP announced on Wednesday that it had bolstered its employee benefits and executive compensation practice by adding a former Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP partner.

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DLA Piper Offered Pregnant Atty 'Dignified' Exit, Jury Told

By Pete Brush

A former DLA Piper associate who claims she was unlawfully fired after announcing her pregnancy was offered a chance to transition out of the firm "without anyone knowing that her work was subpar," a partner told a Manhattan federal jury Wednesday.

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Spencer Fane Adds 75 Attys Through Tie-Up With Okla. Firm

By Tracey Read

Missouri-headquartered Spencer Fane LLP announced Wednesday that it plans to combine with Southwest firm Conner & Winters LLP on July 1 in its largest tie-up to date and its third already in 2026.

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AEG, BigLaw Atty In Hot Seat As Live Nation Trial Nears End

By Stewart Bishop

Live Nation on Wednesday concluded its defense case with glowing testimony about it from the manager for rap star Drake, while the Manhattan federal judge overseeing the case said rival company AEG Worldwide and a Hogan Lovells lawyer may face sanctions for revealing confidential information about a witness.

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DOJ's Lead Google Attys Both Leave Agency Same Day

By Bryan Koenig

The lead attorneys on both of the U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division's monopolization cases against Google left the agency Wednesday or said they would be doing so.

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Mich. Federal Judge Pleads No Contest In Drunk-Driving Case

By Gina Kim

A Michigan federal judge pled no contest Wednesday to a misdemeanor drunken-driving charge in Emmet County court in connection with an incident where he crashed his Cadillac and registered a 0.27% blood alcohol level, apologizing and saying he "looks forward" to continuing his judicial service.

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ABA, State Bars Blast DOJ Proposal To Block Bar Probes

By Emily Sawicki

The American Bar Association and a chorus of state and local bar groups have come out against a proposed rule that would allow the U.S. Department of Justice to pause and review state-level ethics complaints against its attorneys, calling the proposal "unlawful and unconstitutional."

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ABA Rates Montana Judicial Pick 'Not Qualified'

By Courtney Bublé

Katie Lane, senior legal counsel at the Republican National Committee who has been tapped for a federal judgeship in Montana, is the first nominee to receive a majority "not qualified" rating by the American Bar Association in the second Trump administration.

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NY Panel Backs DLA Piper's $482K Fee Win In Malpractice Suit

By Dorothy Atkins

A New York appellate court affirmed Tuesday the dismissal of a Chinese software company's legal malpractice suit against DLA Piper, along with a $482,000 sanctions order against the company and its counsel, noting that the company's frivolous claims also drew a $635,000 sanctions ruling in "mirror" federal court litigation.

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Bondi To Skip Epstein Deposition After DOJ Cites AG Exit

By Courtney Bublé

Former Attorney General Pam Bondi will not sit for her scheduled deposition next week on the Epstein files now that she has left the role, and the Justice Department has asked the House Oversight Committee to withdraw its subpoena.

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Trump Asks NY's Top Court To Toss AG's 'Flawed' Fraud Case

By Lauren Berg

President Donald Trump on Wednesday asked New York's highest court to throw out New York Attorney General Letitia James' "deeply flawed" civil fraud judgment entirely after a lower appellate court tossed what it called an "excessive" $489 million penalty against the president, his sons and his real estate companies.

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