A federal judge recently dismissed a proposed class action lawsuit against Cisco Systems Inc. over its use of BlackRock Inc. target date funds in its employees’ 401(k) plan. Participants in Cisco’s retirement plan had raised concerns about how the company monitored the BlackRock funds, claiming that the comparison to “personalized benchmarks” was not helpful. However, Judge Eduardo J. Dávila disagreed, stating that the use of custom benchmarks was allowed under Cisco’s investment policy statement and had been supported by courts in previous cases.
Judge Dávila’s ruling is seen as a win for Cisco, as it validates the company’s approach to monitoring its employees’ retirement plan investments. The decision highlights the importance of following investment policy statements and utilizing custom benchmarks to evaluate fund performance.
Overall, the dismissal of the lawsuit is a positive outcome for Cisco and its employees, as it upholds the company’s investment practices and reaffirms the legality of using custom benchmarks in retirement plan monitoring.
Article Source
https://news.bloomberglaw.com/employee-benefits/cisco-again-defeats-lawsuit-over-401k-plans-blackrock-funds
