Overview
We have been litigating ERISA fiduciary issues for the past 30 years and were directly involved in many of the most significant ERISA fiduciary liability cases decided by the U.S. Supreme Court. We represented amicus curiae American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) in two seminal ERISA fiduciary cases before the U.S. Supreme Court: John Hancock Mutual Life Insurance Co. v. Harris Trust & Savings Bank, 510 U.S. 86 (1993), aff’g, 970 F.2d 1138 (2d Cir. 1992); and Mertens v. Hewitt Associates, 508 U.S. 248 (1993), aff’g, 948 F.2d 607 (9th Cir. 1991). In Great-West Life & Annuity Insurance Co. v .Knudson, 534 U.S. 204 (2002), we acted as lead counsel for an insurer in a case clarifying the relief available under ERISA for breach of fiduciary duty claims, and argued the case before the U.S. Supreme Court. We also represented amici curiae America’s Health Insurance Plans, the American Benefits Council, and the National Association of Manufacturers before the U.S. Supreme Court in Sereboff v. Mid Atlantic Medical Services, Inc., 547 U.S. 356 (2006), involving the scope of relief available for fiduciary breaches.
Carlton Fields also has served as ERISA counsel to ACLI and a number of other major insurance trade associations, such as America’s Health Insurance Plans and the National Organization of Life and Health Insurance Guaranty Associations. In recent years, we have authored or collaborated on numerous amicus efforts in which fiduciary issues dominated the litigation, including McCaffree Financial Corp. v. Principal Life Insurance Co., 811 F.3d 998 (8th Cir. 2016); Merrimon v. Unum Life Insurance Company of America, 758 F.3d 46 (1st Cir. 2014), cert. denied, 135 S. Ct. 1182 (2015), amicus curiae brief found at 2013 WL 6910034; and Edmonson v. Lincoln National Life Insurance Co., 725 F.3d 406 (3d Cir. 2013), cert. denied, 572 U.S. 1114 (2014), amicus curiae brief found at 2012 WL 3144171.
Aside from litigation, Carlton Fields' labor and employment and tax practices also regularly provide advice and counsel with respect to ERISA regulatory issues, tax issues, and state fiduciary and trust law issues, and have substantial experience representing clients in proceedings initiated by the Department of Labor, the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., and the Internal Revenue Service, and in obtaining prohibited transaction exemptions under ERISA.