(Download) "Useden v. Acker" by Eleventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals * Book PDF Kindle ePub Free
eBook details
- Title: Useden v. Acker
- Author : Eleventh Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals
- Release Date : January 11, 1991
- Genre: Law,Books,Professional & Technical,
- Pages : * pages
- Size : 80 KB
Description
BIRCH, Circuit Judge In this appeal we decide whether the conduct of a bank and a law firm renders those entities fiduciaries under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, 29 U.S.C. §§ 1001-1461 (1988) (""ERISA"" or ""Act""). We also decide whether ERISA provides a right of action for monetary damages against non-fiduciaries who knowingly participate in a breach by a fiduciary. Plaintiff-appellant Neil A. Useden, as trustee to a profit sharing plan and trust (the ""Plan"") governed by ERISA, appeals the grant of summary judgment by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida in favor of defendant-appellees Sun Bank and Greenberg, Traurig. In his Order on Motions for Summary Judgment, Judge Kenneth L. Ryskamp determined that, on the undisputed facts, neither Sun Bank as a lender to the Plan nor the law firm of Greenberg, Traurig as attorneys for the Plan were fiduciaries of the Plan within the meaning of ERISA. The court also determined that no cause of action lay against defendant Greenberg, Traurig as a non-fiduciary who knowingly participated in a breach by a fiduciary. Further, Judge Ryskamp believed that the undisputed facts did not support such non-fiduciary liability notwithstanding the rejection of plaintiff's legal theory.