Articles Tagged with Tibble V. Edison International

The nation’s highest court has just made it easier for workers to sue their 401k plans for charging excessive fees for investments. The case is Tibble v. Edison International, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously for the ex-workers of Edison International.

The plaintiffs contended that the plan fiduciaries’ decision to choose six retail-class mutual funds (out of the forty selected for the retirement plan) was based on the higher fees that these funds charged, compared to institutional class funds that were also allegedly available to investors. Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), retirement plans that are sponsored by an employer have a fiduciary obligation to choose investments that are appropriate and remove any that cease to meet the criteria set up in the investment policy statement.

Five years ago, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California awarded the plaintiffs a $370,732 judgment over damages involving the high fees in three of the retail share class funds at issue. The claims against the other three funds are the ones that went to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and now the Supreme Court.