ERISA—Pensions and Employee Benefits
We handle cases and advise clients on all aspects of ERISA, pensions (including 401k plans) and other employee benefits. This includes fiduciary responsibility, entitlement of individuals and groups of employees to benefits, federal preemption of state laws, benefit plan service-provider malpractice and prohibited transactions. We also handle cases in related areas of law such as COBRA coverage, disability rights, and benefit-related employment discrimination claims. The firm has been involved in cases that have restored hundreds of millions of dollars in pension, 401(k), disability, vacation pay, and other benefits to individuals and classes of employees. The firm is currently investigating potential cases regarding fiduciary mismanagement of pension plans, including 401(k) plans and employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs), as well as cases involving medical and disability benefits.
In addition to these litigation and advice services, our attorneys also provide mediation services and expert testimony in the employee benefits field. Our Attorneys have represented or worked with Plan Participants, Employers, Unions, Trustees, Fiduciaries, Plans and Attorneys.
Members of the firm edit publications on employee benefits and have taught courses in employee benefits at law schools and at continuing education for attorneys programs. They also have testified before Congressional committees on employee benefits matters. Attorneys at the firm lecture and write extensively. The firm has participated in groundbreaking ERISA cases before the U.S. Supreme Court and federal Courts of Appeal, as counsel for either a party or amicus curiae.
If you have concerns about your pension or other employee benefits, please contact us.
Plan Participants
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson’s primary focus is in the ERISA and Employee Benefits area has been the representation of plan participants and beneficiaries in employee benefit disputes with plans, employers, fiduciaries, and others. We also represent participants in breach of fiduciary duty and related claims arising out of disputes over the investment of plan assets and the administration, amendment, and termination of plans. We handle disputes over eligibility for benefits and the amounts of benefits. These include claims for breach of fiduciary duty and benefits under all types of retirement plans—traditional pension plans, 401k plans, profit sharing and money purchase plans, and employee stock ownership plans (ESOPs), etc. We also handle benefit disputes with regard to health, severance, disability, vacation pay, and other benefits.
We represent participants as individuals, groups, and in class action proceedings, and work at every stage of a dispute, from the initial claims process to litigation and appeal.
If you are a plan participant or beneficiary and believe that you have an ERISA or employee benefit-related claim, you should act quickly to preserve your rights. Claims are often subject to very short deadlines established by the plans themselves or by legal statutes of limitations, and evidence can easily be lost, destroyed, or undermined.
Employers
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson has successfully represented employers and plan sponsors in pursuing professional malpractice and other claims against third party plan administrators, consultants, insurance agents and other plan service providers who may have given poor advice or acted in other ways which harmed the plan.
Unions
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson is a supporter of organized labor and has represented unions in a range of employee benefits-related matters. We advise unions regarding employer-sponsored plans, union-sponsored plans, and jointly-administered Taft-Hartley plans. While we do not provide general labor-related legal services, we work in conjunction with union counsel on benefits matters on an ongoing or project basis. In addition, we have represented individual union members in union-supported claims against plans, plan sponsors and plan fiduciaries. We also represent trusts and other organizations established by or for retired union members.
Trustees/Fiduciaries/Plans
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson has represented plans, plan trustees, and other plan fiduciaries in a wide range of matters. Over the years, we have developed a particular expertise in fiduciary standards. We have served as independent counsel to plan committees and Boards of Trustees. We have represented plans and their fiduciaries in suits against former fiduciaries and professional malpractice and other claims against third party administrators, consultants, insurance agents and other plan service providers.
Attorneys
Lewis, Feinberg, Lee, Renaker & Jackson works with other attorneys in a variety of contexts. We engage in litigation across the country through co-counsel arrangements, and we serve as expert consultants and witnesses to attorneys handling ERISA claims. We provide mediation services and maintain relationships with organizations which frequently request us to submit amicus briefs in ERISA cases. We advise corporate or union general counsel on specific ERISA issues. We are happy to speak to attorneys regarding any of the above-described services or to exchange referrals with attorneys in other fields.