Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. ERISA Litigation
The Braden v. Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. et al. ERISA complaint was filed in the United States District Court Western District of Missouri on behalf of Plaintiff and a class (the “Class”) of all persons who were participants in or beneficiaries of the Wal-Mart Profit Sharing and 401(k) Plan (the “Plan”), between January 31, 2002 and the present (the “Class Period”).
In the complaint Plaintiff alleges that excessive fees associated with the Plan’s ten mutual funds resulted in losses of tens of millions of dollars in retirement savings, and that these funds—all retail off-the-shelf funds rather than lower-fee institutional class funds, most of which charged 12b-1 fees, and all of which paid revenue sharing to the Plan’s trustee Merrill Lynch—were selected as a result of a flawed process that was influenced by the kickbacks paid to Merrill Lynch and that their selection was accompanied by a secret side deal to conceal these incentives. Based on these allegations, Plaintiff's complaint contains five counts, alleging that Defendants breached their fiduciary duties to Plaintiff and the Class by:
- failing to prudently and loyally manage the Plan’s assets;
- failing to monitor fiduciaries;
- failing to provide complete and accurate information to the Class;
- co-fiduciary liability; and
- engaging in prohibited transactions regarding revenue sharing and other kickback payments.
On November 25, 2009, the Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed and remanded a decision by the district court for the Western District of Missouri that had dismissed the complaint in October of 2008. The Eighth Circuit opinion reinstates all five of Plaintiff's claims.
Not all claims are against every Defendant. Please Contact Us for more information.
Case Documents
Join Case