Vanderbilt Workers Get Class Status in Retirement Battle

More than 40,000 current and former Vanderbilt University employees received class status in a lawsuit challenging the fees and investment options in the college’s retirement plans.

The Oct. 23 ruling granting class certification focused heavily on whether the Vanderbilt employees had standing—the right to sue—under the U.S. Constitution.

The workers had a sufficient injury giving rise to standing because they alleged that Vanderbilt’s plan mismanagement caused losses in their retirement accounts, Chief District Judge Waverly D. Crenshaw Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee said. The six Vanderbilt workers who offered to represent the class ...