Seven 401(k) plan participants have filed lawsuits against Nokia of America Corp., Murray Hill, New Jersey, its board of directors, its planning committee, and certain individuals, all of whom are members of the company’s defined contribution plan. claimed to have breached ERISA’s fiduciary duties in its administration.
The suit, which was filed December 13 in the United States District Court in Newark, New Jersey, was filed in 1974 for defendants’ failure to ensure that the cost of each investment option was reasonable and for their failure to maintain records. alleges that it violated its fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act. Maintenance and administrative costs, according to court filings.
In filings, plaintiffs allege that defendants paid higher fees for individual accounts customized as an investment option than mutual funds, paid higher recordkeeping fees, and did not bid for services as frequently as they did in their plan. Claims to have been mismanaged. RFP process if “commission benchmarking reveals record holder compensation exceeds levels seen in other similar schemes.”
The lawsuit did not disclose the name of the record holder.
According to the latest Form 5500 filings, as of December 31, the Nokia Savings/401(k) Plan had $8.5 billion in assets.
Nokia spokesman Carol DeMatteo, Mark K. Gyandoh, partner of plaintiffs’ attorney Capozzi Adler, and Donald R. Reavey were not immediately available for comment.
