Court OKs Teamsters Fund to Proceed With Suit to Recoup $98K in Benefits

A Teamsters health fund can seek $97,846 in benefits paid to a quadriplegic beneficiary who later received a third-party settlement for the injuries she sustained during a medical procedure, the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland ruled (Teamsters Local 639-- Emp’rs Health Trust v. Anderson, 2015 BL 9140, D. Md., 8:14-cv-02331-PJM, 1/14/15).

The beneficiary argued that the fund couldn’t maintain its lawsuit under Section 502(a)(3) of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act, because the suit sought legal relief rather than the equitable relief authorized by ERISA. According to the beneficiary, the fund’s failure ...