O’Reilly Automotive Defeats 401(k) Fee Ruling Appeal at 8th Cir.

O’Reilly Automotive Inc. defeated an appeal over its 401(k) plan on Thursday, when the Eighth Circuit said the former employees who filed suit didn’t support their proposed class action with meaningful benchmarks.

The key to mounting a successful challenge to 401(k) plan fees is identifying a meaningful bechmark by which to assess the plan in question, the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit said. This lawsuit flunks that standard, the court said, because it compares the O’Reilly plan’s fees for recordkeeping, investment management, and trustee services to the fees other plans paid for recordkeeping alone.

Comparing fees charged ...