Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) asked for an investigation into the Department of Labor’s (DOL) apparent practice of sharing information obtained from its investigations with plaintiffs involved in ERISA-related litigation. These agreements are known as common interest agreements (CIA).
This CIA thing came up during litigation where information that a plaintiff got from the DOL was ruled not to be privileged and was forwarded to the defense since the DOL didn’t sue the defendants. Apparently, many ERISA litigators have heard of these CIA deals, but they haven’t procured information from them.
The job of the DOL is to investigate and prosecute in defense of participant rights. If they investigate plan fiduciaries, they have no obligation to remain silent and could provide that information to anyone they want.
