Faegre Drinker’s ERISA Litigation Team Wins Motion to Compel Individual Arbitration for Client Tetra Tech in ERISA Class Action

An ERISA litigation team led by partner Kim Jones secured a court order compelling arbitration in a breach of fiduciary duty lawsuit against client Tetra Tech challenging how the company handles 401(k) plan contributions forfeited by workers who leave their jobs before becoming vested in those contributions.

On May 17, 2024, the Central District of California Court granted a motion to compel the plaintiff to arbitrate her ERISA claims on an individual basis, enforcing the 401(k) plan’s arbitration provision that required waiver of class, collective, and representative actions. The court found that Tetra Tech’s 401(k) arbitration provision was enforceable because it allows an arbitrator to award all relief available under ERISA to a claimant acting in their individual capacity, including the removal of a plan fiduciary. The court’s order extinguished the plaintiff’s class and representative claims and limited her remedies to individual monetary relief.

The Faegre Drinker ERISA litigation team was led by partner Kim Jones and associate Emily Kile-Maxwell and included benefits and executive compensation partner Heather Bader. 

See Law360 and Bloomberg Law’s coverage of the case and verdict for more details.