Labor and Employment Law—Distinction Between Damages and Benefits Allowed for Past Employees Under ERISA Claim for Fiduciary Breaches—Evans v. Akers, 534 F.3d 65 (1st Cir. 2008)

First Circuit Review 2009

Congress passed the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) as a means to govern employee-benefit plans.1 ERISA provides a cause of action to plan participants whose vested benefits were miscalculated or reduced by alleged employer misconduct.  In Evans v. Akers, the Court of Appeals for the First Circuit considered whether former employees have standing to sue their employer under ERISA for alleged fiduciary breaches that decreased the value of their retirement benefits account.  The court determined that the former employees had standing to sue under ERISA because their claim was for benefits, not extra contractual damages.