Bronson Healthcare Group Inc., Kalamazoo, Mich. has agreed to settle a lawsuit filed by two former participants in the health-care provider's 403(b) plan, who alleged ERISA violations in the management of the plan.
Representatives of both parties submitted an agreement in principle on Nov. 22 to a U.S. District Court in Kalamazoo, Mich.
Terms were not disclosed, but the notice said a preliminary agreement will be filed with the court on or before Dec. 20 in the case of Gleason et al. vs. Bronson Healthcare Group Inc. et al.
The participants sued in May contending that, among other things, Bronson's fiduciaries should have offered a passively managed target-date series from Fidelity Investments instead of an actively managed one because the former was cheaper.
The complaint, which seeks class-action status, criticized the defendants for paying "unreasonably high fees for retirement plan services" and keeping certain investment options in the plan lineup "despite the availability of identical or similar investment options with lower costs and better performance."
As of Dec. 31, 2020, the Bronson Healthcare Group Inc. 403(b) Tax Sheltered Matching Plan had $870.4 million in assets, according to its most recent Form 5500 filing.
