Theresa Hursh v. DST Systems, Inc, No. 21-3567 (8th Cir. 2022)
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Plaintiffs in these 177 consolidated appeals1 were participants in a 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan (the “Plan”) provided to employees by DST Systems, Inc. (“DST”), a financial and healthcare services company based in Kansas City, Missouri. At the time in question, DST was the Plan’s sponsor, administrator, and a designated fiduciary. Ruane Cunniff & Goldfarb Inc. (“Ruane”) was a Plan fiduciary involved in managing the Plan’s investments. Between October and December 2021, the district court issued seven largely identical orders confirming the arbitration awards to 177 claimants and granting their requests for substantial costs and attorneys’ fees. Defendants appealed, raising numerous issues.
The Eighth Circuit vacated the district court’s judgment including the awards of attorney’s fees, and the consolidated cases are remanded to the district court for determination of transfer and subject matter jurisdiction issues, to the extent necessary. The court concluded that transfer under Section 1631 is an issue that can be addressed before the district court’s subject matter jurisdiction is resolved. The court declined to consider the issue because Badgerow has changed underlying circumstances that may affect whether transfer “is in the interest of justice.”
Court Description: [Loken, Author, with Arnold and Kelly, Circuit Judges] Civil case - ERISA. The plaintiffs in these 176 consolidated appeals participated in a 401(k) plan provided by defendant, a financial and healthcare services company. Its investments suffered a loss between 2015 and 2016, and after winning arbitrations, the plaintiffs brought these actions to confirm their arbitration awards. The district court confirmed the awards and defendant appeals. Held, under Badgerow v. Walter, 142 S. Ct. 1310 (2022), the district court lacked federal question subject matter jurisdiction under either the Federal Arbitration Act or 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1331; as it is not clear on this record whether the district court had diversity jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. Sec. 1332(a)(1), the awards must be vacated and the matters remanded for further proceedings on the question of diversity jurisdiction.
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