Manufacturers Life Insurance v. East Bay Restaurant & Tavern Retirement Plan

AMENDED ORDER.

Before the court is the plan defendants’ motion for summary adjudication. The plan defendants assert that the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA), 29 USC § 1001 et seq, preempts California’s Unclaimed Property Law (UPL), CCP § 1500 et seq, as applied to certain funds held by plaintiff. These funds are held with respect to missing participants in the Pension Plan of East Bay Restaurant and Tavern Unions and Employers. For the reasons stated below, the court holds that ERISA preempts the California UPL in this instance.

ERISA is a comprehensive statute designed to promote the interests of employees and their beneficiaries in employee benefit plans. See Shaw v. Delta Air Lines, Inc., 463 U.S. 85, 90 , 103 S.Ct. 2890 , 77 L.Ed.2d 490 (1983). The statute does not mandate that employers provide any particular benefits. But, for employers that provide certain benefits, ERISA imposes various requirements and sets various uniform standards, including rules concerning reporting, disclosure and fiduciary responsibility.. See 29 USC §§ 1021-1031 , 1104-1114, 1051-1086. The statute does not prescribe any particular procedure for the handling of benefits…