A U.S. District Court judge threw out a case against Microsoft which claimed that the BlackRock LifePath Index Funds suite of target-date funds was an imprudent investment choice for their plan participants.
Plaintiff plan participants claimed Microsoft selected BlackRock TDFs that offered lower fees but were not performing as well as comparative TDFs. The claim was one of a bunch of lawsuits filed by the Miller Shah law firm against companies who offered the TDF, including Booz Hamilton, Cisco, Citigroup and Stanley Black & Decker.
The judge claims that the plaintiffs failed to prove that comparative TDFs outperformed BlackRock’s funds, and that it is not clear plan participants would have invested in a different TDF if other options had been given.
The judge also claimed that the plaintiffs failed to show that Microsoft breached its fiduciary duty under ERISA by not divesting from the BlackRock TDFs.
Microsoft wins Blackrock TDF lawsuit
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