Tibble v. Edison International (575 U.S. 523)

U.S. Supreme Court · decided May 18, 2015 · Supreme Court Database (Spaeth)

Citation
575 U.S. 523 · 135 S. Ct. 1823
Decided
May 18, 2015
Term
October Term 2014
Vote
9–0
Majority author
Justice Breyer
Issue area
Economic Activity
Disposition
Vacated and remanded
Outcome
Petitioning party won
Ideological direction
Liberal

Opinion excerpt

Justice BREYERdelivered the opinion of the Court. Under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), 88 Stat. 829 et seq.,as amended, a breach of fiduciary duty complaint is timely if filed no more than six years after "the date of the last action which constituted a part of the breach or violation" or "in the case of an omission the latest date on which the fiduciary could have cured the breach or violation." 29 U.S.C. § 1113. The question before us concerns application of this provision to the timeliness of a fiduciary duty complaint. It requires us to consider whether a fiduciary's allegedly imprudent retention of an investment is an "action" or "omission" that triggers the running of the 6-year limitations period. In 2007, several individual beneficiaries of the Edison 401(k) Savings Plan (Plan) filed a lawsuit on behalf of the Plan and all similarly situated beneficiaries (collectively, petitioners) against Edison International and others (collectively, respondents). Petitioners sought to recover damages for alleged losses suffered by the Plan, in addition to injunctive and other equitable relief based on alleged breaches of respondents' fiduciary duties. The Plan is a defined-contribution plan, meaning that participants' retirement benefits are limited to the value of their own individual investment accounts, which is determined by the market performance…

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