IBM 401(k) Stock Case Lets Justices Return to Familiar Territory

A case using federal benefits law to challenge a 7% drop in IBM stock price will go before the U.S. Supreme Court Nov. 6, giving the justices their third opportunity in five years to consider 401(k) plans that allow workers to invest in their company’s stock.

The dispute over International Business Machines Corp.‘s 401(k) plan is one of dozens of proposed class lawsuits using the Employee Retirement Income Security Act to challenge drops in a company’s stock price. The lawsuits claim plan fiduciaries, including corporate insiders, have a duty under ERISA to protect workers’ retirement savings when corporate fraud ...