Davis & Harman Partners and Encore Fiduciary Co-Author Blog Post on Voluntary Benefits Litigation
- Published Date: October 26, 2026
On October 13, 2026, Encore Fiduciary together with Davis & Harman partners, Kent Mason and Robert Davis, published a FidGuru Blog post titled, “Voluntary Benefits Litigation: How Plaintiff Firms Turned Broker Compensation into an ERISA Class Action Playbook.”
In the post, authors detail a new trend in ERISA litigation targeting voluntary benefits programs where plaintiffs are alleging that the programs do not qualify for DOL’s safe harbor exempting them from ERISA and that the programs are operated in a manner that violates ERISA. The post details three observed waves of voluntary benefits litigation beginning in December 2025 and continuing throughout 2026.
The authors conclude the post by detailing key questions that courts will consider in response to plaintiffs’ complaints and defendants’ motions to dismiss. The authors offer key takeaways and perspectives that employers should consider when choosing to offer a voluntary benefits program in light of the recent litigation trend.
The full blog post can be found here.
