PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 12

ADMINISTRATION & GOVERNANCE | COVER STORY
TRUTH
LAWSUITS
PLAN
THE
ABOUT
Experts weigh in on the confusing,
and at times contradictory, litigation landscape,
for retirement plan fiduciaries
THERE IS NO QUESTION that litigation in the retirement plan industry has grown dramatically in
recent years-increasingly, participants are making claims against their retirement plan. But what does
that actually mean for plan sponsors?
To help sponsors make sense of this landscape, it is useful to explain some of the language relating to
the potential stages of a case. After a lawsuit is filed, the defendant will generally file a motion to dismiss
and take that to court. At this point, a judge must decide whether the complaint, as it was pled, is sufficient
to go to trial, notes Emily Costin, a partner in the Washington, D.C., office of Alston & Bird.
Some cases end here, while others are determined to have a viable complaint and move forward into
discovery. Discovery is the period during which sides exchange information-through documents and
depositions, for example. The stage after discovery is summary judgment. That is when, Costin explains,
the defendants say, " 'We've produced all these documents, and we've done all these depositions, and here is
all of our evidence, and here are our experts. And this is why we should win-based on all of the evidence,
you don't even need to go to trial.' "
Summary judgment is the last stage just before it is decided whether or not you are going to actually
burden the court with holding a trial or whether the court can just rule on the case, she says. While many
cases have been filed, few have actually made it through to the summary judgment or trial phase.
12 PLANSPONSOR.COM December 2020 - January 2021 Art by Chris Buzelli
T
L

http://www.PLANSPONSOR.COM

PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021

The Truth About Plan Lawsuits
2020 PLANSPONSOR Best in Class DC Providers
Administrative Assistance
Striking the Right Balance
Electronic Upgrade
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Cover1
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Cover2
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 1
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 2
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 3
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 4
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 5
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 6
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 7
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 8
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 9
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 10
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 11
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - The Truth About Plan Lawsuits
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 13
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 14
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 15
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 2020 PLANSPONSOR Best in Class DC Providers
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 17
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 18
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 19
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 20
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 21
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 22
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 23
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 24
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 25
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 26
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 27
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 28
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 29
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Administrative Assistance
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 31
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 32
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Striking the Right Balance
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 34
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 35
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Electronic Upgrade
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 37
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 38
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 39
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - 40
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Cover3
PLANSPONSOR - December/January 2021 - Cover4
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/may_june_2024
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/march_april_2024
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/january_february_2024
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/november_december_2023
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/september_october_2023
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/july_august_2023
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/may_june_2023
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/march_april_2023
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december_2022_february_2023
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/october_november_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/august_september_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/june_july_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/excellenceawards_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/april_may_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/february_march_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december_2021_january_2022
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/october_november_2021
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/august_september_2021
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/june_july_2021
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/april-may_2021
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/february-march_2021
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december-january_2021
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/october-november_2020
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/august-september_2020
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/june-july_2020
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/april-may_2020
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/february-march_2020
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december-january_2020
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/october-november_2019
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/august-september_2019
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/june-july_2019
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/april-may_2019
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/february-march_2019
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december_2018-january_2019
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/october-november_2018
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/august-september_2018
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/june-july_2018
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/april-may_2018
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/february-march_2018
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/december_2017-january_2018
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/november_december_2017
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/october_2017
https://www.plansponsordigital.com/plansponsor/september_2017
https://www.nxtbookmedia.com