A U.S. District Court judge granted a motion to dismiss a lawsuit filed by former employees of O'Reilly Automotive Inc., Springfield, Mo., against the company and its fiduciaries alleging the company mismanaged its 401(k) plan.
Judge Brian Curtis Wimes granted defendant's motion to dismiss in a U.S. District in Kansas City, Mo., on Tuesday. Further information on the dismissal was not immediately available.
The plaintiffs alleged in the May 2022 lawsuit that the company violated the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 by allowing for the charging of excess record keeping fees in the plan, as well as excessive fees for certain investment options compared to similarly sized 401(k) plans.
"Defendants' failure to obtain reasonably priced and properly performing investments from 2016 to 2020 is circumstantial evidence of their imprudent process to review and control the plan's costs and is indicative of defendants' breaches of their fiduciary duties, relating to their overall decision-making," the original lawsuit said.
As of Dec. 31, 2021, the O'Reilly Automotive Inc. Profit Sharing and Savings Plan had $1.5 billion in assets, according to the company's most recent Form 5500 filing.
Mark K. Gyandoh, partner at Capozzi Adler, attorney for the plaintiffs, and officials at O'Reilly Automotive, could not be immediately reached for comment.
