Court OKs AT&T Plan Participant to Seek Retroactive Award of Retirement Benefits

A participant in AT&T Inc.’s pension plan was given the green light Aug. 10 by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to continue with several claims in her action over AT&T’s alleged failure to notify her of a change in the plan’s early retirement eligibility policy (Helton v. AT&T Inc.).

Judge Gerald B. Lee held that plan participant Francine Helton can continue with her claim for retroactive benefits, and with her claims alleging AT&T violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act’s disclosure and fiduciary requirements. The court found that AT&T abused its discretion when ...