ERISA Lawyer

Jaggard v. Aetna Life Ins. Co.

Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP successfully litigated a class action under ERISA relating to Aetna's improper denial of health insurance benefits in refusing to cover medical expenses incurred from the non-hospital use of a continuous passive motion machine prescribed by the plaintiff's and class members' health care professionals to treat knee injuries. In settlement, Shapiro Haber & Urmy obtained 56% of the amount of each claim for benefits for members of the settlement class.

Michniewich v. Digital Equipment Corp.

Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP litigated a class action under ERISA against Digital Equipment Corporation arising out of Digital's decision to refund surplus life insurance premiums to current company employees but not to former company employees. We represented a class of former Digital Equipment employees who were participants in the life insurance plan, and who maintained that Digital Equipment had discriminated against its former employees who had paid excessive premiums under the life insurance plan. Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP successfully settled the case for $4 million.

Richard v. State Street Corp.

The firm represents the plaintiff and the class in an ERISA class action that has been settled for $10 Million, subject to court approval. The class includes current and former State Street employees who were participants in the State Street Salary Savings Program at any time between August 27, 2007 and October 21, 2009 and whose accounts included investments in the Employee Stock Ownership Plan which invested in State Street stock.

The complaint alleged that certain officers and committees of State Street who were fiduciaries of the Plan violated fiduciary duties of loyalty, care, and prudence under ERISA that they owed to participants in the Plan regarding the Plan’s investment of assets in the stock of State Street.

The case was settled after four years of litigation, during which defendants’ motion to dismiss was denied by the Court and extensive discovery was conducted, including examination of millions of pages of documents and depositions of key witnesses.

Further information may be obtained at the settlement website,WWW.STATESTREETCORPERISASETTLEMENT.COM

Stein v. Smith (Stone & Webster, Inc. ERISA Litigation)

Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP represented plaintiffs on behalf of themselves, the Employee Investment and Employee Stock Ownership Plans of Stone & Webster, Incorporated and Participating Subsidiaries, and participants of the Plans. Pursuant to Section 502 of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act ("ERISA"), Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP sought to recover damages to the Stone & Webster employee retirement plans for breach of fiduciary duty by certain former officers and directors of Stone & Webster who were fiduciaries of the plans. The case was successfully settled for $8 million and approved by the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts.  Michelle Blauner primarily handled this case for Shapiro Haber & Urmy LLP.