Supreme Court Declines Review of Fiduciary Breach Claims in Tussey v. ABB

The U.S. Supreme Court recently announced that it will not hear the case of Tussey v. ABB, despite encouragement from the Solicitor of Labor to hear the case. The Tussey case involved whether deference should be limited to fiduciaries’ decisions that relate to benefit claims. 

In Tussey, the plan participants alleged that the revenue sharing payments and other aspects of plan administration resulted in breaches of fiduciary duties. They claimed that the plan sponsor overpaid for recordkeeping services, which they said subsidized costs for services related to the plan sponsor’s other benefit plans as well as corporate matters. The terms of the plan document provided the fiduciaries with the discretion to determine eligibility regarding benefits and to take any other actions with respect to the plan, including interpreting of the terms of the plan. 

ERIC members and trial members can read more here.
The 8th Circuit’s decision is available here.
The Supreme Court’s denial of cert is available here.