Cox

MEMORANDUM AND ORDER

Plaintiffs, trustees of an employee pension and profit sharing plan, bring this action against a brokerage firm and one of its account executives alleging breach of fiduciary duty under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”), 29 U.S.C. § 1001 et seq.; violations of federal and state securities laws; breach of contract; violations of state corporations law; and common law negligence, fraud, and breach of fiduciary duty. All allegations are based upon defendants’ conduct in the management of benefit plan funds.

The parties are now before the court on the defendants’ (1) motion to dismiss all claims in plaintiffs’ complaint excepting the claim for breach of ERISA fiduciary duty and (2) motion to strike plaintiffs’ prayer for punitive damages under ERISA. Having considered the submissions and arguments of the parties, for the following reasons, the court (1) GRANTS in part and DENIES in part defendants’ motion to dismiss and (2) DENIES defendants’ motion to strike plaintiffs’ prayer for punitive damages under ERISA.

BACKGROUND

Plaintiffs Stephen Cox and Peter Molli-gan are trustees of (1) Hoberg, Finger, Brown, Cox & Molligan, a…