Justia ERISA Opinion Summaries

JB Viva Vegas, L.P. challenged the assessment of withdrawal liability imposed by the Nevada Resort Association-International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and Moving Picture Machine Operators of the US and Canada Local 720 Pension Trust under the Multiemployer Pension Plan Amendments Act (MPPAA). JB had contributed to the Trust’s pension plan for stagehands working on a theatrical production, which later closed. The Trust asserted withdrawal liability, arguing that its plan no longer qualified for the entertainment industry exception due to a shift in employee work from entertainment to convention-related activities.After JB’s request for review went unanswered, it initiated arbitration. The arbitrator initially ruled in JB’s favor, finding the plan qualified for the entertainment exception and ordering rescission of the withdrawal liability. The Trust then sought to vacate the arbitration award in the United States District Court for the District of Nevada. The district court vacated the award, reasoning that the relevant year for determining the plan’s status was the year JB withdrew, not when it joined, and remanded to the arbitrator. On remand, the arbitrator granted summary judgment to the Trust, concluding that the MPPAA was ambiguous as to how much entertainment work was required and that the plan did not “primarily” cover entertainment employees because less than half earned most of their wages from entertainment work. The district court affirmed the arbitrator’s decision, granting summary judgment to the Trust.On appeal, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reviewed the district court’s summary judgment de novo. The court held that the MPPAA’s entertainment industry exception does not require a minimum amount of entertainment work for an individual to qualify as an “employee in the entertainment industry.” Therefore, the Trust’s plan primarily covers such employees if a majority perform any entertainment work. The Ninth Circuit reversed the district court’s decision and remanded the case. View "NEVADA RESORT ASSOCIATION-INTERNATIONAL ALLIANCE OF THEATRICAL STAGE EMPLOYEES AND MOVING PICTURE MACHINE OPERATORS OF THE US AND CANADA LOCAL 720 PENSION TRUST V. JB VIVA VEGAS, LP" on Justia Law

Plaintiff filed suit under section 502(a)(1)(B) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), 29 U.S.C. 1132(a)(1)(B), after the plan administrator determined that plaintiff's disability-onset date rendered him ineligible for benefits. The Fourth Circuit affirmed the district court's conclusion that plaintiff was entitled to benefits and order requiring the Plan to provide the benefits. The court explained that the Board failed to follow a reasoned process or explain the basis of its determination -- neither addressing nor even acknowledging new and uncontradicted evidence supporting plaintiff's application, including that of the Plan's own expert. View "Solomon v. Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan" on Justia Law