Lone BlackRock 401(k) Suit Allowed by Judge Unnerves Employers

Federal courts are overwhelmingly rejecting the uptick in 401(k) lawsuits challenging firms for offering their workers low-cost target-date funds, but one notable recent exception in Virginia may spark employers’ anxiety.

A judge in the US District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia late last month denied a motion to dismiss a case that two retirement plan participants brought against Genworth Financial Inc., alleging their employer mismanaged funds by favoring a suite of underperforming BlackRock Inc. TDFs.

Senior Judge Robert E. Payne‘s decision allowing that case to proceed sets it apart from a flurry of nearly a dozen ...