The Fourth Circuit recently concluded that a Sears employee’s state law claims seeking money damages based on denial of insurance benefits (for failure to submit evidence of insurability questionnaire) was preempted by ERISA.  The Court explained that resolution of the state law claims required examining the plan to determine Sears’ obligations as plan administrator and making determinations on how Sears performed in its administration of the plan.  In so ruling, the Court rejected plaintiff’s argument that his claims were not preempted because he only challenged Sears’ actions prior to the denial of benefits, i.e., the deduction of premiums from his pay and informing him that he had coverage, as a “distinction without a difference.”  The case is Prince v. Sears Holdings Corp., No. 16-1075 (4th Cir. Jan. 27, 2017).

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Photo of Tulio Chirinos Tulio Chirinos

Tulio D. Chirinos is an associate in the Labor & Employment Law Department and a member of the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group and the Workplace Investigations Practice Group.

Tulio works on a wide variety of ERISA and non-ERISA plan litigation matters…

Tulio D. Chirinos is an associate in the Labor & Employment Law Department and a member of the Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Group and the Workplace Investigations Practice Group.

Tulio works on a wide variety of ERISA and non-ERISA plan litigation matters, including fee and investment litigation cases, breach of fiduciary duty claims and benefits claims. He also represents management in workplace investigations and litigation of employment-related matters, including claims of unlawful discrimination, harassment and retaliation. Tulio focuses his pro bono efforts on immigration matters where he has represented several juveniles from Central America in their asylum petitions and special immigrant juvenile status (SIJ) petitions.

Tulio is the author of several ERISA-related articles, including several focusing on ERISA fee and investment litigation that appeared in the Benefits Law Journal (2016-2023), Bloomberg BNA, and Law360. He is a contributing author to Chapter 10 (Fiduciary Responsibility) of BNA’s Employee Benefits Law treatise. He is also the co-editor and a frequent contributor to Proskauer’s Employee Benefits & Executive Compensation Blog.

Prior to joining Proskauer, Tulio clerked for the Federal Public Defender’s office for the Middle District of Florida. Tulio is a retired Lieutenant Colonel in the Army National Guard and served three tours of duty in Iraq, Kuwait, and Jordan.