Macy's obtains dismissal of ERISA action

Client(s) Macy's, Inc.

Jones Day represented Macy's, Inc. its directors, and the Macy's Pension and Profit-Sharing Administrative Committee in a lawsuit (dismissed) alleging ERISA violations based on Macy's alleged failure to locate former employees and notify them at the time they became eligible to receive normal retirement pensions.

The complaint alleged that the defendants breached their fiduciary duty to disclose, and that Macy's engaged in prohibited transactions by retaining assets in the plan that should have been paid to participants. On November 5, 2010, the court granted defendants' motion to dismiss, finding that the plaintiffs did not have standing to bring suit as they failed to show a remediable injury to the plan, and that any alleged injuries to individuals likewise failed to meet Constitutional standing requirements. The court also found that Plaintiffs failed to plead sufficient facts to support a claim that Macy's breached its fiduciary duties in failing to locate and notify former employees and that they failed to identify any transaction that would form the basis for a prohibited transaction. The plaintiffs did not appeal the district court's decision, leading to dismissal of the lawsuit with prejudice.

Nobleza v. Macy's Inc., No. 10-cv-2064 (N.D. Cal. 2010)