Working in concert with the firm’s labor and employment practice, Karl Nelson, Ashley Johnson, and Heather Richardson have spearheaded a dedicated ERISA litigation team at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. Leading the group from Dallas, Nelson and Johnson are strong litigators and regularly lead on complex class actions spanning pension benefits, fiduciary duties, tobacco surcharges, and excessive fees. Based in Los Angeles, co-head Heather Richardson has a strong track record in ERISA cases involving health plan administration and benefit determinations, recently acting as lead counsel for the defendant in Popovchak v. United Healthcare Services. Jennafer Tryck from Orange County assists the department in the full gamut of contentious mandates, defending large plan sponsors and insurers in trial courts and on appeal.
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Accolades
Client satisfaction: Lawyer & team quality
Client satisfaction: Billing & efficiency
Client satisfaction: Sector knowledge
Client satisfaction: NPS ®
Key clients
- Honeywell
- United Surgical Partners International
- UnitedHealth Group Inc.
- Kimberly-Clark Corporation
- UBS Group AG
- The ERISA Industry Committee
- Ford Motor Company
- Financial Services Institute (FSI)
- Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA)
Work highlights
Secured a series of consequential victories in the Ninth Circuit on behalf of United Behavioral Health (UBH) in Wit v. United Behavioral Health.
Defending Honeywell, a Fortune 200 company, in a purported ERISA nationwide class action, claiming that one of its retirement plans pays insufficient benefits to surviving spouses.
Represents Tenet Healthcare subsidiary United Surgical Partners International, Inc. (USPI) in its defense of a putative class action alleging health plan participants were charged an unlawful tobacco surcharge in violation of regulatory requirements under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (“ERISA”).
Lawyers
Next Generation Partners
Junior partners with significant recognition from clients and peers in the market and key roles on multiple matters.
Practice head
Ashley Johnson; Karl Nelson; Heather Richardson
Other key lawyers
Jennafer Tryck