Thermo Fisher 401(k) Plan Forfeiture Challenge Dismissed Again

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. is free from litigation challenging how it handles forfeited money in its 401(k) plan, after a California federal judge said employers aren’t legally obligated to maximize monetary benefits.

Retirement plan fiduciaries must ensure that participants receive the benefits promised to them by the plan document, but they’re not required to maximize each individual participant’s financial benefit, Judge Benjamin J. Cheeks said. Thermo Fisher therefore didn’t violate federal law when it used the unvested 401(k) contributions forfeited by departing workers to make its required plan contributions instead of using that money to lower workers’ administrative expenses, Cheeks ...