August 2025 - Spotlight on Benefits

In this Spotlight on Benefits post, we discuss the nature of equitable relief under ERISA and another federal circuit court decision rejecting surcharge as an available equitable remedy.

As background, ERISA contains an exclusive civil enforcement provision that sets forth the only claims and forms of relief available to ERISA plaintiffs. One of those claims is under ERISA § 502(a)(3), which authorizes, among other things, a claim for appropriate “equitable relief” to remedy a violation of ERISA or an ERISA plan. ERISA does not define “equitable relief,” and that phrase can have different meanings depending on the context.

Continue reading “Sixth Circuit Rejects Surcharge as a Remedy Under § 502(a)(3)”

As noted in our prior blog post, on April 26, 2024, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) issued a Final Rule updating certain Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) privacy rules with respect to the disclosure of protected health information (PHI) related to reproductive health care (the 2024 Rule). The 2024 Rule was aimed at prohibiting covered entities from using or disclosing PHI to conduct criminal, civil or administrative investigations, or to impose corresponding liability on a person seeking or providing lawful reproductive health care. HHS issued the 2024 Rule in response to the chilling effect the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization¹ decision striking down Roe v. Wade was expected to have on women seeking reproductive health care advice and procedures in certain states.

Continue reading “HIPAA Reproductive Health Care Privacy Rule Vacated”