Plaintiffs Drop Appeal of Home Deport ERISA Case

Plaintiffs abandoned their appeal of a district court’s decision that The Home Depot Inc. did not breach its fiduciary duties in its use of retirement plan forfeitures.

U.S. District Judge Tiffany R. Johnson, presiding in U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, dismissed the case, Guadalupe Cano v. The Home Depot Inc. et al., with prejudice, meaning the plaintiffs could not refile the complaint in the same district court or amend the complaint.

Instead, the plaintiffs planned an appeal to the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals before abandoning the effort on December 1, according to court records.

The original complaint alleged that The Home Depot had violated its fiduciary duties under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act by consistently using forfeited funds to pay plan administrative expenses.

In dismissing the complaint, Johnson emphasized the distinction between fiduciary and settlor roles carried out by plan sponsors, noting that courts have consistently held that how plan sponsors choose to use plan forfeitures is a settlor function.

In July, the Department of Labor weighed in on forfeiture complaints in a separate case, filing an amicus brief supporting the employer.