When those entrusted to manage retirement savings fail in their duties — through imprudent investments, excessive fees, or inadequate oversight — working Americans pay the price. We hold plan fiduciaries accountable under federal law.
$983B+
In 401(k) plan assets subject to fiduciary oversight nationally
60M+
American workers in 401(k) plans at risk of fiduciary misconduct
28%
Retirement loss from just 1% in excess fees over 35 years
ERISA §404
Federal statute governing the ongoing duty of prudence
What Is ERISA Litigation
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA) is the federal law governing employer-sponsored retirement plans. It creates a rigorous set of enforceable fiduciary duties — prudence, loyalty, and diligence — owed by plan administrators, investment committees, and their advisors to the employees whose retirement savings they control.
When fiduciaries fall short, ERISA authorizes participants to bring civil actions on behalf of the plan — recovering losses, removing imprudent fiduciaries, and obtaining equitable or remedial relief under 29 U.S.C. §§ 1109(a) and 1132(a)(2).
“With the care, skill, prudence, and diligence under the circumstances then prevailing that a prudent person acting in a like capacity and familiar with such matters would use in the conduct of an enterprise of like character and with like aims.”
Federal courts have recognized distinct, recurring patterns of fiduciary misconduct in 401(k) litigation. Each represents a measurable failure to meet the standards ERISA demands.
Keeping actively managed funds that consistently trail their benchmarks over rolling three- and five-year periods. The U.S. Supreme Court in Tibble v. Edison International (2015) confirmed fiduciaries bear a continuing duty to monitor and remove imprudent investments — separate from and beyond the one-time duty of initial selection.
Allowing plan assets to fund advisory or management fees that materially exceed the reasonable market rate. The U.S. Department of Labor estimates that just one percent in excess annual fees over 35 years reduces a participant’s final retirement balance by 28 percent — a devastating, compounding harm that falls entirely on working Americans.
Large plans have significant bargaining power. Fiduciaries who fail to leverage it — overlooking cheaper institutional share classes, collective trusts, or equivalent index funds — breach their duty of prudence. Functionally identical options at meaningfully lower cost are frequently available and must be actively considered.
ERISA § 406 prohibits fiduciaries from engaging in transactions that benefit parties in interest at the plan’s expense. Retaining a service provider that adds no demonstrable value — or selecting funds that serve the advisor’s own financial interests over those of participants — can constitute a per se statutory violation requiring no showing of subjective intent.
As traditional pensions have given way to defined contribution plans, employees bear all investment risk. That shift makes rigorous fiduciary oversight more consequential than ever — participants have no safety net when plans are mismanaged.
Small fee differentials and modest return shortfalls, sustained across decades, produce dramatic reductions in retirement wealth. Losses compound quietly, erasing tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars per participant before they ever notice.
In Tibble v. Edison International (2015), the Supreme Court unanimously affirmed that plan fiduciaries bear a continuing duty to monitor and remove imprudent investments — clearing the path for sustained fiduciary accountability in federal courts across the country
Because ERISA duties run to the plan itself, successful litigation delivers relief to all affected participants — not just the named plaintiff. Courts regularly certify these cases as class actions under Rule 23(b)(1), maximizing recovery for every member of the plan.
ERISA fiduciary breach cases follow a well-established federal litigation path. Our team has the experience, technology, and resources to manage each stage with precision on behalf of plan participants and co-counsel partners.
Counsel conducts independent quantitative analysis of Form 5500 filings, fund prospectuses, benchmark comparisons, information ratio data, turnover rates, and fee benchmarking. A detailed federal complaint names the responsible fiduciaries — the plan sponsor, investment committee, and any co-fiduciary advisors.
Because ERISA fiduciary duties run to the plan rather than individual participants, courts regularly certify these cases as class actions under Rule 23(b)(1). A single proceeding resolves the plan-wide harm and ensures all affected participants benefit from the outcome.
Counsel obtains investment committee meeting minutes, advisor contracts, quarterly monitoring reports, and internal decision records. Financial experts calculate damages using appropriate benchmarks, counterfactual return modeling, and industry-standard fee analysis.
Cases may resolve through court-approved settlement — ensuring fairness to the entire class — or through trial. Successful plaintiffs are entitled to restoration of plan losses, disgorgement of fiduciary profits, and injunctive relief requiring improved plan governance going forward.
Federal courts and the U.S. Department of Labor have obtained significant recoveries against plan fiduciaries who failed their participants. These cases illustrate the breadth of actionable conduct and the scale of recoverable harm.
$124.6M
Investment manager Ruane, Cunniff & Goldfarb concentrated over 45% of the DST Systems 401(k) plan’s assets in a single pharmaceutical stock — Valeant Pharmaceuticals — which subsequently collapsed by nearly 90%. The plan’s 9,000+ participants lost in excess of $100 million. Following a seven-year litigation involving the DOL and private plaintiffs, fiduciaries paid $124.6 million — one of the largest ERISA settlements ever obtained.
$69M
Participants in UnitedHealth Group’s 401(k) plan alleged that fiduciaries allowed plan assets to be steered toward investment options that generated revenue for affiliated parties — a textbook conflict of interest under ERISA § 406. The $69 million settlement, finalized in 2025, set a record for ERISA cases involving conflicts of interest and improper fee arrangements, covering hundreds of thousands of plan participants.
$61M
Plan participants alleged that GE’s retirement plan improperly loaded the investment menu with GE-affiliated proprietary funds that underperformed their benchmarks while generating fees for GE’s own asset management arm. The $61 million cash settlement — the largest ever in an ERISA case solely involving proprietary fund selection — was finalized after six years of litigation in the District of Massachusetts.
$48.5M
Following a week-long jury trial that resulted in a $38 million verdict, Pentegra ultimately settled for $48.5 million. The case alleged that plan fiduciaries charged excessive recordkeeping and administrative fees, retained high-cost mutual funds in violation of their duty of prudence, and engaged in prohibited transactions under ERISA § 406 — making this one of the rare ERISA cases to proceed through a full jury trial before resolution.
$43M
A former Providence employee alleged that the health system breached its fiduciary duties by using plan forfeitures — unvested matching contributions from departing employees — to reduce the employer’s own future contribution obligations rather than returning the funds to participants. The $42.7 million settlement benefited approximately 202,000 plan participants and beneficiaries, and stands among the largest ERISA forfeiture breach resolutions on record.
Krause & Kinsman brings the same rigorous, technology-driven methodology that has made us national leaders in complex mass tort litigation to ERISA fiduciary breach cases. We conduct independent quantitative performance analysis, institutional fee benchmarking, and forensic review of fiduciary decision-making — building the comprehensive evidentiary record that sophisticated federal courts require.
Our firm has been appointed to Plaintiff’s Leadership Committees in many of the country’s most significant complex litigations. We welcome co-counsel inquiries from firms with potential ERISA matters, and handle qualifying cases on a contingency basis.
Quantitative Rigor
Independent benchmark analysis, information ratio review, turnover rate assessment, and institutional fee benchmarking — the complete analytical picture fiduciaries were required to conduct and document.
National Reach
We represent clients across all 50 states and maintain established relationships with 130+ referral and co-counsel partners who trust us with their most complex matters.
Leadership Track Record
Appointed to Plaintiff’s Leadership Committees in over 30 major litigations. Judges and co-counsel alike recognize our ability to manage complexity with professionalism and precision.
Whether you represent a plan participant, are a referring firm, or are evaluating your own plan’s governance, our team is available for a confidential consultation. We handle qualifying cases on a contingency basis — you pay nothing unless we recover.
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