In a ruling that upends conventional thinking on the standards for class certification of claims brought under ERISA section 502(a)(2), the Fourth Circuit overturned class certification of a lawsuit challenging the selection of 401(k) defined contribution plan investment funds. Trauernicht v. Genworth Fin. Inc., 2026 WL 667917 (4th Cir. Mar. 10, 2026). Drawing a
Class Certification
ERISA Plan Participants Cannot Proceed As A Class In Challenging EpiPen Prices
By Russell Hirschhorn & Kyle Hansen on
Four ERISA plan participants, who participated in four different ERISA plans, commenced an ERISA class action against four of the nation’s largest pharmacy benefit managers (PBMs), alleging that the PBMs breached their fiduciary duties by failing to ensure that the plaintiffs and other plan participants received the benefit of discounts that the PBMs had negotiated…
Supreme Court Says that Equitable Tolling Cannot Extend Rule 23(f) Deadline
By Elise M. Bloom, Mark W. Batten & Noa Baddish on
In a unanimous decision authored by Justice Sotomayor on February 26, 2019, the Supreme Court held that the 14-day deadline to seek permission to appeal a decision granting or denying class certification under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 23(f) cannot be extended through the doctrine of equitable tolling. Nutraceutical Corp. v. Lambert. The Court…
Class Certified in Claims for Autism Treatment Coverage
By Steven A. Sutro on
A federal district court in the Western District of Kentucky certified a class of participants and beneficiaries in plans sponsored by Anthem Health Plans of Kentucky, Inc. who had been denied coverage or reimbursement for Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). Plaintiff claimed that the time and dollar limitations violated ERISA and…